Pukumani Pole Design

John’s etching shows the desig of a Tiwi pukumani pole, or burial pole. John explained that when a person dies, erveryone goes to the place where the lines intersect with the circle for a ceremony. The same design is used as a body painting. Different clans in different areas come together for the mourning ceremony, some sit in some areas; others sit in other areas. The ceremony goes for two days. Before the ceremony, the in-laws of the deceased person make the poles. The elders get together and hand over the ochre to the workers. They get an axe or a chainsaw and cut down the trees (bloodwood) to make the poles. The in-laws pay money to the family of the person who has died perhaps material, bags, money or beer for the celebration afterwards.

Dimensions: 22 x 15 cm, etching