Louis Ledoux: Papua New Guinea Collection
By Willow Auction House
Nov 16, 2021
2 Frassetto Way Lincoln Park, NJ 07035, United States

Adventurer, Academic, Industrialist: Louis Pierre Ledoux 1936 New Guinea Expedition


In early 1936, on recommendation by American anthropologist Margaret Mead, Louis Pierre Ledoux, recent Harvard University graduate, headed to the lower eastern Sepik River of Papua New Guinea to study the Murik people.


The results of his self-funded expedition is an extraordinary collection of hundreds of artifacts, photographs, manuscripts, diaries, and letters left untouched for 85 years.

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LOT 187:

Small Rope Bag

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Sold for: $200
Start price:
$ 200
Estimated price :
$400 - $600
Buyer's Premium: 28% More details
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Small Rope Bag

Small, very tightly woven rope bag, with extensive shell decoration.

Possibly referred to in his Diary page 296, 298 (lot 108, box F1) where Ledoux describes funerary rites of a man, Moiega, who had just died: "Finally a special bag with shell like pods on (cf. collection) was placed on his chest" (page 296) and "The bag placed on his chest was part of the war regalia which was used along with a cassowary feather/half wig (collected) to scare others." (page 298).

Similar item, 1936 gift of Louis Pierre Ledoux to the American Museum of Natural History - Division of Anthropology (80/9034). Catalog entry reads "Bag, decorated with shells and split pig's teeth, worn hung from neck to carry tobacco and betel"

Locale: Murik Lakes, Lower Sepik River
Country: Papua New Guinea
Date: 1936 or earlier
Material: Rope, fiber, shells
Dimensions: H 4" x W 8" (with handle, height is 12")

Similar item:
American Museum of Natural History - Division of Anthropology 80/9034
https://anthro.amnh.org/anthropology/databases/common/image_dup.cfm?catno=80%2E0%2F%209034

 



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