set of rituals. The object must be created within
the confi nes of an enclosure that the uninitiated
cannot see into. Before setting to work with
their adzes,9 the men chew areca nuts and kill a
chicken, the blood of which they will pour out
onto the wood that will be used for the sculpture.
100
10 The sculptors also spit their chewed betel
onto the wood and rub it in vigorously so that it
penetrates. These two red substances, the blood
and the chewed betel, are supposed to enable
the ancestral spirits to imbue the wood with
their strength. The ancestors are supposed to
encourage the carvers with their voices, which
manifest themselves through the sounds of the
bamboo fl utes that several men play. All who
participate in the creation of the work must adhere
to certain dietary restrictions, specifi cally
of avoiding pig fat, eel, and catfi sh (Arius species).
They may eat only cooked vegetables and
coconut meat, and they can also ingest magical
plants mixed with areca nut. They are enjoined
from sexual activity for the entire duration of
the work. The transgression of any of these taboos
risks compromising the effectiveness of the
fi nished object.
The installation of such a sculpture takes
place after the building’s roof and coverings
are done, since the posts that support the work
must fi rst be set. When the gable sculpture is
placed onto the post (fi g. 10), the upper extremity
of the latter is fi rst passed through an orifi ce
in a piece of wood sculpted in the shape of the
raptor known as ambungawi (Milvus migrans),
which is attached horizontally to the end of the
house’s ridgepole (Schindlbeck, 1985; Hauser
Schaüblin, 1989: 393). This ritual apparently
is a representation of the primordial sexual
act, which Bateson seems to confi rm (1971:
151), adding, “The male sexual act is clearly
associated with violence and pride.” These diverse
manipulations require the building of a
special scaffolding near each gable, which allows
the men responsible for the placement of
the gable sculptures access to its upper part,
which is considered to be like a nest (fi g. 16).
A major festival is then organized that reunites
the paternal and maternal lineages with a relationship
through the ancestor associated with
the gable sculpture.
Like the carvers, the men in charge of the installation
are also subject to various sexual and
dietary taboos. Incantations are recited during
the ceremony to ensure that the placement of
the sculpture occurs in the most favorable conditions
and in such a way as to enhance its
effi ciency. Women come to dance around the
building while the men affi x the sculpture to
the gable. This ceremony is the last of numerous
rituals associated with the construction of
an ngekau house, which can take several years
to complete. According to Margaret Mead
(1963: 214), different customs prevailed among
the Chambri: “When one of these houses was
constructed, the spires were fi rst simply built up
with wattle and two birds, one male and one female,
also of wattle, were attached to their summits.
Later, when the builders had more time,
the gable spires were carefully covered with
thatch and the wicker birds were replaced with
heavier wooden bird ornaments from whose
wings a human form emerged.”
In 1988, Beny Nagondambui of the Mbowi
clan of Palembai described the ceremony that
accompanied the placement of a gable sculpture
in an Iatmul village: “The maternal relatives all
arrive, very happy, men, women, and children,
and everyone participates in the festivities. We
will place a woman wearing a fi ber dress and
carrying a bird like the hornbill on her back
onto the summit of the men’s house. We put her
at the top —that is, the ngawi. … In former
times, the elders waited a while before putting
this thing on the summit of the house. They beat
the kwangu drums and made war. They injured
a man with a spear and brought him back to
the village. They performed a circular dance
around the gable of the new house, and when
the sculpture had been placed atop it, the man
was executed.”
FUNCTIONS OF THE SCULPTURES
In the beginning of the 1930s, Bateson (1971:
151) noted some information about these sculptures:
“The natives state clearly that the eagle
is the kau of the village.” Kau is a word that
means “a group of raiders” or “combat force.”
He explains that the bird is believed to speak
during the placement ceremony. Since the base
of the sculpture is hollow like a drum, it reso-
FIG. 25 (below):
Water drum. Middle Sepik,
Papua New Guinea.
Fundación La Fontana,
inv. FI.2011.02.21.
FIG. 26: Two sculptures
recently made for sale in the
Iatmul village of Palimbeï,
Papua New Guina.
Private collection.
FEATURE