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PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT AMERICAN COLLECTION
Lot 20
Fine and Rare Popoi Janus Pounder, Marquesas Islands
21 November – 5 December 2024, 12:00 PST
Online, Los AngelesUS$12,000 - US$18,000
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Fine and Rare Popoi Janus Pounder, Marquesas Islands
ke'a tuki popoi
Stone (probably basalt)
Lenth 6 5/8in (17cm)
Provenance
Loudmer Paris, 23 and 24 June 1995, Lot 110
Wayne Heathcote, Brussels/London/New York
American Private Collection
Bonhams, Los Angeles, 23 May 2017, Lot 146
Private Collection, United States
As noted by Eric Kjellgren and Carol S. Ivory, "Popoi pounders form part of the basic equipment of every Marquesan household. With their spare lines and robustly modeled grips that broaden into wide, flaring bases, they are at once ingeniously designed functional objects and striking works of art. In former times popoi pounders, fashioned from close-grained volcanic rock [seen here], were made by specialist carvers known as tuhuka ke'a tuki popoi. The process of carving and smoothing the pounders was originally performed almost entirely with stone adzes, although some examples appear to have been finished by abrasion or pecking. Pounders also commonly received a final polish in which a mildly abrasive paste made from charcoal and coconut oil was used to impart a dark lustrous sheen to the surface." (Adorning the World - Art of the Marquesas Islands, The Metropolitan Museum of New York, 2005, p. 105-6)
Stone (probably basalt)
Lenth 6 5/8in (17cm)
Provenance
Loudmer Paris, 23 and 24 June 1995, Lot 110
Wayne Heathcote, Brussels/London/New York
American Private Collection
Bonhams, Los Angeles, 23 May 2017, Lot 146
Private Collection, United States
As noted by Eric Kjellgren and Carol S. Ivory, "Popoi pounders form part of the basic equipment of every Marquesan household. With their spare lines and robustly modeled grips that broaden into wide, flaring bases, they are at once ingeniously designed functional objects and striking works of art. In former times popoi pounders, fashioned from close-grained volcanic rock [seen here], were made by specialist carvers known as tuhuka ke'a tuki popoi. The process of carving and smoothing the pounders was originally performed almost entirely with stone adzes, although some examples appear to have been finished by abrasion or pecking. Pounders also commonly received a final polish in which a mildly abrasive paste made from charcoal and coconut oil was used to impart a dark lustrous sheen to the surface." (Adorning the World - Art of the Marquesas Islands, The Metropolitan Museum of New York, 2005, p. 105-6)
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