lintel
- Museum number
- Oc1854,1229.89
- Description
-
Carved lintel or panel (pare or korupe) made of wood. Openwork carving with central tiki figure and surrounding manaia figures with haliotis (paua) shell eyes.
- Production date
- 1800s-1820s
- Dimensions
-
Height: 52 centimetres
-
Width: 98 centimetres
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Depth: 4 centimetres
- Curator's comments
-
Hooper 2006
A large and complete example of a type of carved panel (pare or korupe) fitted above the doorway of a chief's house, and later above the doorway of elaborately carved meeting houses (which began to be built around 1840). The entrances of important buildings usually received decorative carving or painting. An analogy could be made between buildings and the human body, whose orifices (ears, eyes, nose and mouth) were also the site of decorative elaboration. Lintels often have a central female figure as here, which performs a tapu-removing function for those entering a house.
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Starzecka, Neich and Pendergrast 2010
130 Colour plate 8
Lintel, pare
1854.12-29.89. Width 98 cm.
Wooden openwork lintel with central wheku figure, pearl-shell eyes, hands on chest, mask replacing genitals. Both terminal manaia with definite female sex organs and standing on large manaia faces. Surface decoration all plain spirals with angular unaunahi rather than ritorito, although giving effect of pungawerewere. Some minor restoration.
Provenance: Grey Collection.
Comments: Poverty Bay: 1800–20s. Very fine controlled surface decoration on deep sculptured forms; masterful carving (RN). 1820–40 (DRS).
References: Archey 1960: 207, pl. 38B; Archey 1962:
- Location
- Not on display
- Exhibition history
-
Exhibited:
1979 – 1980 15 Feb-29 Sept, London, BM, Museum of Mankind, Captain Cook in the South Seas
2008 16 Jun-14 Sep, Paris, Musée du quai Branly, Pacific Encounters
2006 21 May-13 Aug, Norwich, Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Pacific Encounters
1998 27 Jun-1 Nov, London, BM, Maori
- Condition
- Heavily restored, several areas made up with filler.
- Acquisition date
- 1854
- Department
- Africa, Oceania and the Americas
- Registration number
- Oc1854,1229.89
