Matjemosh: A Woodcarver from the Village of Amanankai-Asmat Tribe on the Southwest Coast of New Guinea

Synopsis: First-person narration (with Oxford accent) by the carver, who describes the complete process of making a hand-drum, from selecting the tree to carving the handle. Other demands for carvings are more briefly considered and there are sequences of a quarrel involving Matjemosh. His account of the significance of the carvings and their designs in male initiation and the headhunting cult end the film. The Asmat live in large villages in the swamps of southwest New Guinea; their subsistence is based on sago and fish and previously warfare was of great importance. The great elaboration of the male cult with its ritual and art is typical of many lowland New Guinea cultures.
Language: English
Country: Belgium
Medium: Film; Film. 16mm. sd. col. 27 min.
Technical information: Black-and-white / Sound
Year of production: 1965
Availability: Hire
Documentation: Matjemosh and other carvers from his village are discussed in detail in the director’s ‘Wow-Ipits: Asmat woodcarvers of New Guinea’, translated into English by Inez Wolf Seeger; (The Hague, Mouton & Co, 1967).
Uses: Undergraduates. Postgraduates.
Subjects: Anthropology
Keywords: ceremonies; drums; headhunting; New Guinea; social life and customs

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