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Prehistoric Stone Sculpture from New Guinea

• 
  Bird Head, date unknown
  Papua New Guinea, reportedly found in the Morobe district
  Stone, pigment

  H. 4 1/4 in. (10.8 cm)
  The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, Purchase, Nelson A. Rockefeller Gift, 1966 (1978.412.1504)

• 
  Zoomorphic Figure, date unknown
  Mendi region, Southern Highlands, Papua New Guinea
  Stone, pigment

  H. 16 1/8 in. (41 cm)
  Anonymous Gift, 1984 (1984.123.1)

• 
  Bird Figure, date unknown
  Mount Hagen region, Western Highlands, Papua New Guinea
  Stone

  H. 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm)
  Purchase, Discovery Communications Inc. Gift, 1996 (1996.373.2)

• 
  Pestle Finial in the Form of a Bird, date unknown
  Mount Hagen region, Western Highlands, Papua New Guinea
  Stone

  H. 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm)
  Purchase, Discovery Communications Inc. Gift, 1996 (1996.373.1)

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The earliest known works of Oceanic sculpture are a series of ancient stone figures unearthed in various locations on the island of New Guinea, primarily in the mountainous highlands of the interior.

Related

Cited Works of Art or Images (1)

• 

Timelines (6)

• Oceania, 2000–1000 B.C.
• Oceania, 1000 B.C.–1 A.D.
• Oceania, 1–500 A.D.
• Oceania, 500–1000 A.D.
• Oceania, 1000–1400 A.D.
• Oceania, 1400–1600 A.D.

Primary Thematic Essays (2)

• The Asmat
• Introduction to Prehistoric Art, 20,000–8000 b.c.

Other Thematic Essays (7)

• Aztec Stone Sculpture
• Cerro Sechin: Stone Sculpture
• European Exploration of the Pacific, 1600–1800 a.d.
• La Venta: Stone Sculpture
• Monte Alban: Stone Sculpture
• Musical Instruments of Oceania
• Tikal: Stone Sculpture

Maps (1)

• World, 2000–1000 b.c.

Index Terms (9)

Art Movement/Style

• Stone Figure Tradition in New Guinea
• Stone Figure Tradition in Oceanic and Pacific Art

Geography/Place

• Melanesia
• Oceania

Material and Technique

• Miscellaneous Stone
• Sculpture in the Round from Oceania

Subject Matter/Theme

• Archaeology
• Archaeology from Oceania
• Bird

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The earliest known works of Oceanic sculpture are a series of ancient stone figures unearthed in various locations on the island of New Guinea, primarily in the mountainous highlands of the interior. To date, no examples have been excavated from a secure archaeological context. Although organic material trapped within a crack in one example has recently been dated to 1500 B.C., firm dating and chronology for the figures are otherwise lacking.

The stone sculptures fall into three basic categories: mortars, pestles, and freestanding figures. The tops of many pestles are adorned with images of human heads, birds, or bird's heads. The mortars display similar anthropomorphic and avian imagery as well as geometric motifs. Freestanding figures include depictions of humans, birds, and phalluses, as well as long-nosed animals that some scholars identify as echidnas (spiny mammals resembling hedgehogs). While the original significance and function of these stone images remain unknown, they possibly represent totemic species or ancestors and were likely used in ritual contexts. When found by contemporary New Guinea peoples, these early stone sculptures are often thought to be of supernatural origin and are reused in a variety of religious contexts, from fertility rituals to hunting magic and sorcery.

Eric Kjellgren Department of Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Jennifer Wagelie Graduate School and University Center, City University of New York

Citation

Kjellgren, Eric, and Jennifer Wagelie. "Prehistoric Stone Sculpture from New Guinea". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/ngss/hd_ngss.htm (October 2001)

Further Reading

Newton, Douglas. "Prehistoric and Recent Art Styles in Papua New Guinea." In Exploring the Visual Art of Oceania: Australia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia, edited by Sidney M. Mead, pp. 32–57. Honolulu: University Press of Hawai'i, 1979.

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