Tribal Clothing – Decorated Sheath, #8210 $35.00

Decorated gourds, or phallocrypts, were once everyday wear for the indigenous peoples in the mountain villages of Papua New Guinea. Today, these handcrafted artifacts, like this one made by the Iatmul people of middle Sepik River region, are used in tribal ceremonies as well as revered as collector art pieces.

The gourds are still worn as the primary piece of clothing in some remote villages in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.

These elaborately decorated gourds are often made with paint, bush twine, seeds and shells.

This rather modest sized gourd measures 3.25 inches long with an opening diameter of 1.25 inches.


#8210 Phallocrypt from the middle Sepik River villages of Mumeri and Kamanabit. Papua New Guinea