Early Asmat War Shield with Intricate Carvings

An early war shield, North West Asmat Region, Papua, (early…
click the photo to enlarge
An early war shield, North West Asmat Region, Papua, (early twentieth century), carved wood and natural pigments, 195.3 cm high. This finely carved and early Northwest Asmat war shield originates from the upper Unis River. The shield possesses intricate early incised designs and patination with indicates it would date to the early part of the twentieth century (if not earlier). Provenance: Reputedly collected by Dutch Missionaries. in the 1950s. Private Collection, Sydney

You must be a subscriber, and be logged in to view price and dealer details.

Subscribe Now to view actual auction price for this item

When you subscribe, you have the option of setting the currency in which to display prices to $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

This item has been sold, and the description, image and price are for reference purposes only.
  • Incised - A record of a name, date or inscription, or a decoration scratched into a surface, usually of a glass or ceramic item with a blunt instrument to make a coarse indentation. Compare with engraving where the surface is cut with a sharp instrument such as a metal needle or rotating tool to achieve a fine indentation.
  • Patination / Patina - In broad terms, patination refers to the exterior surface appearance of the timber, the effect of fading caused by exposure to sunlight and air over the course of a century or more, changing the piece to a soft, mellow colour.

    As patina is very difficult to replicate, it is one of the most important guides to determining the age of furniture.

    Patina is also the term applied to the bloom or film found on old bronzes due to oxidisation.

This item has been included into following indexes:

Visually similar items

A shield, Iwam people, May River, East Sepik Province, a finely carved and painted shield comprised of four panels of abstract designs with infill ochre in red, yellow, white and black. Provenance: Collected by John Simpson; Simpson was a geologist working

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

Gope Board. Of long flattened, ovoid form with intricate incised and raised decoration, coloured with red, black and white natural pigments. Dry patina. Papua New Guinea. Length 189 cm. Width 27 cm. Provenance: T. Clemence Collection, New Zealand

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

Tribal shield (PNG) carved wood and natural fibres, decorated with natural pigments, length 155, width 30 cm

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.

A Victorian silver match case engraved with leaf scrolls and with vacant cartouche; Birmingham 1894

Sold by in for
You can display prices in $Au, $US, $NZ or Stg.