HELP!!! What is this guy?

What and where is this from
Maybe an age?

Got this guy for Christmas. It is 3'6 tall heavy dark wood. Scary as it gets. Bone teeth. Cowry eyes. Horse hair head. Freaking scary. Arms lift up sides

O yeah did I say he is scary

I don't know but he's damned handsome. Looks a lot like me :lol:

Oh my god, it didn't die! You're doomed, DOOMED!

It looks like a imported Bali carving of some sort. The way the shells are used for eyes makes it seem like a PNG influenced piece.

[ Edited by: tikilongbeach 2013-12-26 08:16 ]

Demon!

You are so lucky, he'd scare off any bad guys who break into your home. Wendy

Whatever it is, it's not tiki.

I have yet to zero in on the true origin of these type of import figures that have flooded the American market in the last ten years. They pop up on e-bay frequently (mostly smaller sized), and often carry the term "Tiki" in their description, like here:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LARGE-CARVED-WOODEN-MAN-PRIMITIVE-TIKI-WOOD-CARVING-STATUE-TRIBAL-ART-INDONESIA-/161171327251?_trksid=p2047675.l2557&nma=true&si=Owep%252BBLggmYd2dD%252BO4W8zJPG5d0%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

Unfortunately, they have nothing to do with Tiki style. On e-bay, they are also identified as stemming from Australia or Bali. And they are NOT "1970s souvenirs":

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-OLD-VINTAGE-CARVED-WOODEN-TRIBAL-TYPE-FIGURES-1970S-SOUVENIRS-/261358302941?pt=UK_Antiques_Woodenware_RL&hash=item3cda2b36dd

I say they hail from the foggy island of hacked wood. When I was asked to identify two found wood carvings on Storage Wars, one a Witco cat and one a full 4 foot version of the type posted here, I had to tell them that the cat was more Tiki than this figure.
More examples:

But wait! I think I found an answer. This "Exotic Touch" website seems to know what they are talking about:

http://www.magiscraft.8m.com/prod03.htm

WITH pricelist! Amazing: An "Asmat" wine rack. An "Asmat" TV cabinet. There IS some similarity to the spirit of Witco here :)

What these carvings have to do with real Asmat art eludes me, though. Compare:

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/asma/hd_asma.htm

Firewood. Sorry

On 2013-12-26 09:08, bigbrotiki wrote:
I had to tell them that the cat was more Tiki than this figure.

Cats are tiki.

On 2013-12-26 10:24, Joe Banks wrote:
Cats are tiki.

Uh, cats could be Egyptian, depending on your frame of reference. :)

On 2013-12-26 10:24, Joe Banks wrote:
Cats are tiki.

Only if they eat:

"Asmat TV stand" :lol: I think the ancient Asmats invented TV didn't they?

But I guess in actuality, there is nothing wrong with something in a primative style with a modern function.

If any knows where I can find an "Asmat Fondue Pot", let me know.

I saw this statue at a flea market. The dealer had no idea of its origin other than "Pacific Islands" Would anyone be able to shed some light on where it might be from and approximate value? Thanks.

It's from Papua New Guinea. Nice carving too. If it's about 16- 18", I've seen that size/style go around $75-100 on ebay. Swap meet I've paid $15-20 for 3 different ones about that size. My personal sense of its worth puts it in the $75-90 range, if it's in a antique store retail setting. $50 or under would be a good buy for that one, in my opinion. Most I'd ever pay would probably be about $90, and I'd really really have to like it.

Buzzy Out!

Buzzy, Thanks.

On 2013-12-26 09:08, bigbrotiki wrote:
I have yet to zero in on the true origin of these type of import figures that have flooded the American market in the last ten years. They pop up on e-bay frequently (mostly smaller sized), and often carry the term "Tiki" in their description, like here:

Unfortunately, they have nothing to do with Tiki style. On e-bay, they are also identified as stemming from Australia or Bali. And they are NOT "1970s souvenirs":

I say they hail from the foggy island of hacked wood. When I was asked to identify two found wood carvings on Storage Wars, one a Witco cat and one a full 4 foot version of the type posted here, I had to tell them that the cat was more Tiki than this figure.
More examples:

I actually rather like these, although I only have one. I started seeing these in gift shops in some of our Texas beach downs six or seven years ago.

Unfortunately, I frequently see them sold as "vintage" items. Whether that's due to their "primitive" inspired look or seller simply being disingenuous I don't know.

Would definitely be interesting to know who started this trend...

Of course I am not sure but I believe the figures that you mentioned are different than the one I pictured.

They sell these at the February Gem show here in Tucson. There are literally hundreds of them at about 10 different vendors. They go for between 10 bucks to about a hundred for a the really large ones. One vendor called them Bonefigla or something similar.

On 2014-10-20 07:59, ukutiki wrote:
Of course I am not sure but I believe the figures that you mentioned are different than the one I pictured.

I agree with you, the carving in the image you posted is not part of that flood of cheap Indonesian stuff.