IDNO

T.131985.MST

Description

On Strathern's listing: Ui and Nǝlka (tribe) friends standing before a moka pena (ceremonial ground). Place: Nǝlka near Education School.
The man on right has a miti (mission) style hair cut; the man next to him a neatly bound wig; while his neighbour has a wig more loosely fixed and the man on the far left has no wig covering at all. NB By ‘wig’ is meant either the wearer’s own hair as it is, bound and pressed into shape by the covering (here they are all net coverings), or else his hair with additional hair or other bulky material to make a larger showing.
Men may carry their work axes around with them as a matter of course. They are all wearing bark belts and aprons, one of them an omak (bamboo moka tally).

Place

Oceania Melanesia; Papua New Guinea; Western Highlands Province; Dei Council area

Cultural Affliation

Nǝlka (tribe)

Named Person

Nǝlka Ui

Photographer

Strathern, Marilyn (later Prof., Dame)

Collector / Expedition

Date

7 February 1964

Collection Name

Strathern Collection

Source

Strathern, Marilyn (Prof., Dame)

Format

Colour Transparency

Primary Documentation

Other Information

T.131959.MST - T.131992.MST were identified by Marilyn Strathern as Set 2.

Named Person: "Ui, Nǝlka (tribe) M". [Information provided by Marilyn Strathern on 'List of Personal Names', KH 21/03/2017]

Context: moka pena = ceremonial ground. [Strathern's Glossary word document, JD 4/24/2017]

Context: miti style = ‘mission style’ hair cut. [Strathern's Glossary word document, JD 4/25/2017]

Context: omak = set of bamboo tally sticks worn by men, which indicate how many times they have given away sets of eight or then shells in moka (p37) (Melpa). [Strathern's Glossary word document, JD 4/27/2017]

A grant from the Wenner-Gren Foundation Historical Archives Program supported the documentation and preservation of the Strathern photographic collection. [JD 6/11/2017]