NAGA RITUAL HEADHUNTERS ANCESTRAL HUMAN SKULL TROPHY BUFFALO HORNS

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I have compiled a wealth of unique treasures, antiques and artworks from Asia with a fantastic and mysterious history from travels, China, Japan, Bali, Tibet, Burma/Myanmar, Cambodia, Taiwan, Philippines, Laos and Vietnam. My fascination with Asia inspired me to move here from England and become an avid collector/buyer of Asian oriental antique statues, carvings, puppets, bronzes and unique objects, other items have been from years of collecting and accumulating from estates, private collections and auctions. NAGA RITUAL HEADHUNTERS ANCESTRAL HUMAN SKULL TROPHY BUFFALO HORNS Stunning Dayak Hill tribe village headhunter/ancestors skull trophy with wild boars teeth, feathers, porcupine quill and cowry shells mounted on a radional board using rattan.. One of many new pieces I have just picked up from a dealer friend. This was made by the Dayak tribe but the skull is made from ceramic as real skulls are no longer used, from the info I have this was originally a museum display piece and then was sold onto a private collector when the museum closed. The bottom 4 photos are of other skulls I have on ebay this week for sale and more to come. The Dayak tribe from the Borneo islands in Indonesia carve designs into skulls of their headhunted victims and insert wooden figures. The Dayak, Ifugao and Naga human skulls are headhunter’s trophies. The Asmat, Vanuatu and Palawan human skulls are considered “Ancestor� skulls. The difference is; head hunted skulls are acquired from enemy victims. Ancestor skulls are collected and venerated to remember deceased family members. The Ifugao collect bones of dead relatives wrap them in tribal textures and store them in the rafters under their huts. Human skulls and skull caps from Nepal are ritual offertory vessels that are used as drinking cups in Tibetan Buddhist ceremonies. Several cultures honor human skulls in a variety of ways, but they all consider human skulls valuable entities that are worthy of preserved collections but human skulls in some cases have become a tribes preoccupation. The Asmat live in what might well be described as the worst place on Earth. Torrid jungle and muddy swamps infested with malarial mosquitoes are their everyday habitat. Their renown as artists is equaled only by their infamy as ferocious head-hunters; indeed, it has even been suggested that their seemingly compulsive preoccupation with warfare and art was a direct result of their desire to contain, subdue or simply forget their environment. The geographically hostile coast and its physically dangerous inhabitants are frequently mentioned in early texts, and the traveler was advised not to land anywhere along the Casuarina Coast, as Asmat territory was then called. In its day, a head-hunting expedition was a very powerfully charged event, a time of great danger and great reward; a time when the spirits seemed most present. The Dutch colonial government, and later the Indonesian government frowned on head-hunting and the practice has been formally banned since the first Dutch presence in the region. However, head-hunting still persisted among the coastal Asmat up until perhaps the early 1960s, and among the Asmat of the more remote areas, until perhaps quite recently. Even today, there are areas in the foothills between the Asmat area and the highlands where head-hunting is likely still going on among unacculturated groups. There is no such thing as dying a natural death among the Asmat. Even if death comes about because of illness or through an accident, the event is always determined by magic or the spirits. A person dies because he or she has fallen victim to the evil intentions of someone else, someone who through magic and supernatural power has weakened the body and spirit of the deceased. In other words, an enemy. If every death is caused by the spear or black magic of an enemy, then the importance of vengeance for the Asmat becomes more clear. Women would urge men to avenge the death of a husband, father, brot... read more

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