Headdress (naute)
20th century, 1950–2000
Object PlacePapua New Guinea
Medium/TechniquePlaited vine (Lygodium sp), pigment
DimensionsOverall: 33.6 x 27 cm (13 1/4 x 10 5/8 in.)
Credit LineGift of Geneviève McMillan in memory of Reba Stewart
Accession number2009.2757
On View
Not on viewClassificationsCostumes
DescriptionHarvest masquerades are central to the Abelam peoples of Papua New Guinea. The ceremony marks the conclusion of a harvest contest where farmers compete to grow the most spectacular yams, vegetables that also have strong symbolic meaning. Dancers wear plaited headdresses on such occasions, while the tubers themselves also receive adornment for their display, as they are transformed into images of clan ancestors.
Provenance1965, sold by Galerie Le Corneur et Roudillon, Paris to Geneviève McMillan (b. 1922 - d. 2008), Cambridge, MA; 2008, to the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation, Cambridge; 2009, gift of the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 17, 2009)
