Spirit Board (gope)
- Culture
- Kerewa artist
- Date
- 20th century
- Material
- Wood, pigment
- from
- Gulf province, Papua New Guinea, Oceania
- Classification
- Sculpture, wood
- Collection
- Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 107
- Dimensions
- 45 13/16 x 13 9/16 in. (116.4 x 34.5 cm)
- Credit Line
- Bequest of Morton D. May
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 1369:1983
NOTES
This abstracted figure, carved in relief and painted on an ovoid board, is just one example of the immense visual variety demonstrated by "gope" (spirit boards) from the Papuan Gulf. While their differences correspond to the specific spirit represented and reveal a range of regional styles, certain elements are always present. The navel, for example, emphasizes the site of transmission and origin of life. Each figure represents a particular forest or river spirit as it appeared in a sculptor’s dream. Each gope belongs to its own clan, who install them in the ceremonial men’s house within interior alcoves that display the most sacred clan objects.
Provenance
- 1962
Carlebach Gallery, Inc., New York, NY, USA
1962 - 1983
Morton D. May (1914-1983), St. Louis, MO, purchased from Carlebach Gallery, Inc. [1]
1983 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, bequest of Morton D. May [2]
Notes:
[1] An invoice dated July 17, 1962 from Carlebach Gallery, Inc. to Morton D. May documents the purchase of this object, listed as "SP. 96 Gope, Kerewa Creek, ca. 1890, polychrome" [May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum].
[2] Last Will and Testament of M. D. May dated June 11, 1982 [copy, May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum]. Minutes of the Acquisitions and Loans Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 20, 1983.
Carlebach Gallery, Inc., New York, NY, USA
1962 - 1983
Morton D. May (1914-1983), St. Louis, MO, purchased from Carlebach Gallery, Inc. [1]
1983 -
Saint Louis Art Museum, bequest of Morton D. May [2]
Notes:
[1] An invoice dated July 17, 1962 from Carlebach Gallery, Inc. to Morton D. May documents the purchase of this object, listed as "SP. 96 Gope, Kerewa Creek, ca. 1890, polychrome" [May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum].
[2] Last Will and Testament of M. D. May dated June 11, 1982 [copy, May Archives, Saint Louis Art Museum]. Minutes of the Acquisitions and Loans Committee of the Board of Trustees, Saint Louis Art Museum, September 20, 1983.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.