id: 139794 accession number: 1963.555 share license status: Copyrighted url: https://clevelandart.org/art/1963.555 updated: 2023-03-16 15:19:07.875000 Ancestral Tablet, c. 1940. Melanesia, Papua New Guinea, Papuan Gulf, Era River region, 20th century. Painted wood; overall: 126.7 x 20.3 cm (49 7/8 x 8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of The May Company, Cleveland 1963.555 title: Ancestral Tablet title in original language: series: series in original language: creation date: c. 1940 creation date earliest: 1935 creation date latest: 1945 current location: creditline: Gift of The May Company, Cleveland copyright: --- culture: Melanesia, Papua New Guinea, Papuan Gulf, Era River region, 20th century technique: painted wood department: Oceania collection: Oceanic Art type: Sculpture find spot: catalogue raisonne: --- CREATORS --- measurements: Overall: 126.7 x 20.3 cm (49 7/8 x 8 in.) state of the work: edition of the work: support materials: inscriptions: --- CURRENT EXHIBITIONS title: Year in Review (1963) opening date: 1963-11-27T05:00:00 Year in Review (1963). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 27, 1963-January 5, 1964). --- LEGACY EXHIBITIONS --- PROVENANCE --- fun fact: digital description: wall description: Ancestral tablets are among the sacred objects stored in the ceremonial houses of the Papuan Gulf. Some are owned collectively, by clans, while others are the property of individuals. The tablets are used in the consecration of ceremonial houses and canoes, or in the initiation of children. --- RELATED WORKS --- CITATIONS --- IMAGES