Female Figurecirca 1850

Not on view

Small carved bone or ivory figurine of a seated human form with a large rounded head, raised arms, and dark streaks across the pale surface

Title: Female Figure
Place Made: Tonga
Date Made: circa 1850
Medium: Sperm whale ivory
Dimensions: 3 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 in. (7.62 x 3.81 x 3.81 cm)
Credit Line: Purchased with funds provided by the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation with additional funding by Jane and Terry Semel, the David Bohnett Foundation, Camilla Chandler Frost, Gayle and Edward P. Roski, and The Ahmanson Foundation
Accession Number: M.2008.66.31
Classification: Sculpture
Collecting Area: Art of the Pacific
Curatorial Notes: Gallery Label
This pendant is one of only nineteen small Tongan figural sculptures in existence. Most are made of ivory, some larger examples are wooden, and all have the same general interpretation of the female form. It is likely that they are representations of female ancestors, which were important in the Tongan bloodline. The female figure also could be seen as the originator of the leading hereditary descent line. The figures were worn by high-ranking females and could have been strung together on a necklace. All of the figures share a similar stance and specific stylistic features, including short powerful bodies with bent, flexed legs, pointed breasts, strong trunks, and flat triangular faces and facial features. Some examples found in Fiji have carved areas at the back of the head that may have been used as suspension areas for a necklace, and are more than likely Tongan in origin. The use of rare whale ivory indicates that the figure was a highly treasured object.
Provenance: Collected by the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society, aboard the John Wesley, on the first voyage, in 1850 (sale, Exeter (England) Centenary Hall, May 1851) sold to; Dawson family member, Exeter, England, by inheritance to; William Dawson, Sunderland, England. Wayne Heathcote (b. 1943), New York, NY, sold to; Masco Corporation Collection, Livonia, MI, sold 2008 through; [Sotheby’s, New York, to]; LACMA.
Selected Bibliography: Wardwell, Allen. Island Ancestors: Oceanic Art from the Masco Collection. [Seattle]: University of Washington Press, 1994.
Harding, Julian. "Pacific Treasures: the Masco Collection Goes to Los Angeles." Tribal Art no.50 (2008): 68-73.

Related Unframed

Female Figurecirca 1850

Not on view

Title: Female Figure
Place Made: Tonga
Date Made: circa 1850
Medium: Sperm whale ivory
Dimensions: 3 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 in. (7.62 x 3.81 x 3.81 cm)
Credit Line: Purchased with funds provided by the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation with additional funding by Jane and Terry Semel, the David Bohnett Foundation, Camilla Chandler Frost, Gayle and Edward P. Roski, and The Ahmanson Foundation
Accession Number: M.2008.66.31
Classification: Sculpture
Collecting Area: Art of the Pacific
Curatorial Notes: Gallery Label
This pendant is one of only nineteen small Tongan figural sculptures in existence. Most are made of ivory, some larger examples are wooden, and all have the same general interpretation of the female form. It is likely that they are representations of female ancestors, which were important in the Tongan bloodline. The female figure also could be seen as the originator of the leading hereditary descent line. The figures were worn by high-ranking females and could have been strung together on a necklace. All of the figures share a similar stance and specific stylistic features, including short powerful bodies with bent, flexed legs, pointed breasts, strong trunks, and flat triangular faces and facial features. Some examples found in Fiji have carved areas at the back of the head that may have been used as suspension areas for a necklace, and are more than likely Tongan in origin. The use of rare whale ivory indicates that the figure was a highly treasured object.
Provenance: Collected by the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society, aboard the John Wesley, on the first voyage, in 1850 (sale, Exeter (England) Centenary Hall, May 1851) sold to; Dawson family member, Exeter, England, by inheritance to; William Dawson, Sunderland, England. Wayne Heathcote (b. 1943), New York, NY, sold to; Masco Corporation Collection, Livonia, MI, sold 2008 through; [Sotheby’s, New York, to]; LACMA.
Selected Bibliography: Wardwell, Allen. Island Ancestors: Oceanic Art from the Masco Collection. [Seattle]: University of Washington Press, 1994.
Harding, Julian. "Pacific Treasures: the Masco Collection Goes to Los Angeles." Tribal Art no.50 (2008): 68-73.