Older Kwoma Yina yam fertility figure with exaggerated phallic nose. (AMP)

A large and superb 1960s Yina figure. The oval, bowl- shaped head , with prominent eyes and a large phallic nose, is supported on a short stake which enables it to stand or lean in front of the mountain of yams displayed in the sprit house during the ceremony. The most prominent feature of this piece is the exaggerated phallic nose, which reflectstthe role of this carving and the Yina ceremony for which it is made in fertility rites that affect both crops and human beings. Height of Yina carving 130cm / 51 inches, dimensions of face only 97 x 30 cm / 38 x 12 inches.

In the days when custom was strong, there was a cycle of three great Kwoma harvest and fertility ceremonies held every year, each one named for the specific carving made to honor it. The first ceremony was called Yina and was aggressively male, celebrating the procreative strength of the ancestors, the virility of the men of the clan, and the fecundity of the harvest. The typical Kwoma Yina is an oval face supported by a sharpened stake with a large and often obviously phallic nose. The second ceremony was called Minja and was also aggressively male, the Minja carving consisting of a narrow flat board with a stylized face at the top, often with hooks or stylized hornbill beaks above and below. The third ceremony, Nogwe, was quite different and paid homage to the female element, an acknowledgement that no matter how aggressively virile the men of the tribe might be, they could not procreate without the women. The Nogwe figure is blatantly feminine, with prominent breasts and vagina

Price:$750.00 AUD
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