IDNO

T.153763.RPT

Description

On Catalogue Card for T.151563.RPT: "237. S.P. New Guinea. Gumine. 35mm.Ekta." [Poignant's manuscript]
"3 and 4. Almost as good, ditto [Man singing, fellow with pigeon feathers]." [Poignant's typed text]

A group of men singing and dancing at a sing sing in Gumine prior to a larger sing sing at Sinasina to celebrate a pig kill. They are wearing red and black feather head dresses, facial jewellery, and facial paint. [KK 16/08/2022]

Place

Oceania Melanesia; Papua New Guinea; Highlands Region; Chimbu Province; Gumine District; Gumine

Cultural Affliation

Named Person

Photographer

Poignant, Axel

Collector / Expedition

Date

1969

Collection Name

Poignant Collection

Source

Poignant, Roslyn

Format

Colour Transparency

Primary Documentation

Other Information

T.153759.RPT - T.153777.RPT and P.156395.RPT - P.156397.RPT were located in a wrapped paper package numbered C1023/1.

Bibliographical reference: Poignant, Axel and Roslyn. 1972. Kaleku. London: Angus and Robertson, p.33. This extract comes from a children's book, written about a boy named Kaleku and his family in Gumine: "Several days later [after Gala and Gimbol's marriage] the people from Gimbol's place came down for another exchange of food. 'Have you heard?' the visitors asked. 'There's to be a big sing – sing at Sina Sina in a few weeks' time.
Everybody will be going.'
'That's several days' walk away over the mountains,' Dai to Kaleku [his grandson]. 'Our men will begin to practise their singing and dancing at once.'
The excitement grew. Each day some of the men who were going to Sina Sina gathered at one of the dancing grounds near Gumine and began to sing and dance. Their voices rang out across the gardens. Their drums thundered.
Kaleku was restless. If only he could go to Sina Sina with the men! But his holidays were almost over. He would miss the sing – sing because he was going away to school in Kundiawa.
'Never mind,' Erita comforted him, 'we can still dress up.'
She picked some flowers for Kaleku to fix in his net cap.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Suddenly the drums sounded much louder.
'Look, look, Erita!' shouted Kaleku. 'The dancers are coming this way. Let's join them!'" [KK 15/08/2022]