Oceanic art and architecture - Melanesian, Rituals, Carvings | Britannica

Oceanic art and architecture

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dilly bag; Aboriginal Australian art, Northern Territory, Australia

Initiation scene in a cult house. From Abelam, Papua New Guinea. In the Museum of Ethnology, Basel, Switzerland.

warrior's neck ornament

Stone figure, igneous rock. From the Ambum River valley, Papua New Guinea. In the Australian National Gallery, Canberra.

Easter Island moai

Canoe prow, wood, paint, and cassowary feathers, from Geelvink Bay, Irian Jaya; in the Basel (Switz.) Museum of Cultures.

Double figure from a house post, wood. From Lake Sentani, Irian Jaya. In the Australian National Gallery, Canberra.

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The first indication of the existence of any form of art in Melanesia is shown by the use of pigments, probably for personal decoration, in the eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea by 15,000 bc. Other examples of early art in New Guinea include the stone carvings, including pestles, animal and human figures, and mortars, that have been found in the central Highlands, where most seem to have been made. Some were exported to eastern Papua New Guinea. The carvings are as yet undated, although it is known that plain stone bowls were in use about 2000 bc. Much of ...(100 of 20297 words)

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