A PAPUA NEW GUINEA CASSOWARY "PAYBACK" DAGGER AND COWRIE SHELL BASKET, ATTRIBUTED TO THE ITAMUL PEOPLES, MIDDLE SEPIK RIVER, EARLY/MID 20TH CENTURY, natural pigment slip paint, terracotta embedded with shells on a cassowary bird bone dagger, topped with feather hair, height: 14 1/2", diameter: 4"; together with an unassociated primitive textile storage basket, attributed to Central Africa, with leather pull on circular top, the whole encrusted with hand sewn cowrie shells, height: 8 1/2", diameter: 7 1/2". Note: "Perhaps the most widespread Papua New Guinea custom (and the most feared) is the payback. According to payback principle, the relatives and the fellow tribesmen of the victim of some offence--perhaps theft, assault, rape or murder--are obliged to pay back the culprit for his wrong-doing. It is considered an insult to the victim's tribe if the police and the courts are allowed to arrest and punish the offender. Retribution must come from the tribe itself. According to payback, it is not necessary to find the individual who committed the crime. Anyone of the culprit's family or tribe will do. It is a kind of primitive vendetta. But it extends over the whole village and tribe of the offender. It is easy to see how such a system of vengeance can quickly inflame a whole district. The likeness of the possible offender is molded in mud over a cassowary bone which is then placed outside the individual's house. This likeness has eyes of cowry shells, bits of hair and the bone is sharpened to a point so it will stand upright." Courtesy: Faye's Tribal Art

Some losses throughout, soil, and expected wear, but overall in fair to good condition, wear commensurate with age and use. Simpson Galleries strongly encourages in-person inspection of items by the bidder. Statements by Simpson Galleries regarding the condition of objects are for guidance only and should not be relied upon as statements of fact and do not constitute a representation, warranty, or assumption of liability by Simpson Galleries. All lots offered are sold "AS IS."