Vao Island, Malekula, Vanuatu
Circa 1940–1950
Fossilized coral
Height: 12½ in (32 cm)
Provenance: Nicolai Michoutouchkine, Noumea; American East Coast collection
Carved stone heads from Vao Island belong to a small and documented group of related objects, all collected on the island and connected to the men's house traditions of northern Malekula. The anthropologist Jean Guiart collected several examples for the Musée de l'Homme in the early 1960s — now held at the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris — and noted that the coral stone heads were found inside village men's houses, with earlier field photographs showing examples placed against garden walls, understood to support the fertility of yams and other cultivated plants. The British Museum holds a comparable example, situating this group within a recognized body of documented material.
This example was field-collected on Vao Island by Nicolai Michoutouchkine in the early 1960s, when he accompanied Jean Guiart on fieldwork visits to Malekula and Ambrym Island. The head is carved from fossilized coral, the porous texture of the material giving the surface a distinctive quality distinct from carved wood or fired clay. The facial features — almond-shaped eyes, a broad nose, and a clearly articulated mouth — are rendered with a directness and calm that is consistent across the known examples of this group.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Vao Island, Malekula, Vanuatu
Circa 1940–1950
Fossilized coral
Height: 12½ in (32 cm)
Provenance: Nicolai Michoutouchkine, Noumea; American East Coast collection
Carved stone heads from Vao Island belong to a small and documented group of related objects, all collected on the island and connected to the men's house traditions of northern Malekula. The anthropologist Jean Guiart collected several examples for the Musée de l'Homme in the early 1960s — now held at the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris — and noted that the coral stone heads were found inside village men's houses, with earlier field photographs showing examples placed against garden walls, understood to support the fertility of yams and other cultivated plants. The British Museum holds a comparable example, situating this group within a recognized body of documented material.
This example was field-collected on Vao Island by Nicolai Michoutouchkine in the early 1960s, when he accompanied Jean Guiart on fieldwork visits to Malekula and Ambrym Island. The head is carved from fossilized coral, the porous texture of the material giving the surface a distinctive quality distinct from carved wood or fired clay. The facial features — almond-shaped eyes, a broad nose, and a clearly articulated mouth — are rendered with a directness and calm that is consistent across the known examples of this group.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
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