Papua New Guinea Culture and Enga Society

mortar and pestle are normally in shape of animals
modern-day highlanders unearth artifacts and perform rituals with them
- “amb kor” or “kor nganap” is a ceremonial cycle for female fertility spirit
Enga Society
- “big man” system
- people with power to redistribute resources and have supernatural resources are powerful

Ambum Stone

special mortar and pestle
- because of level of detail
- durable, difficult greywacke material
depict a juvenile long-beaked echidna
- revered fatty animal for food source before pigs
Enga people unearthed Ambum stone in modern times
- “simting bilong tumbuna” - bones of our ancestors
- cult object with a life of its own
- imbued with supernatural powers
- buried in ancestral lands and appeased with sacrifices
- can protect lands
controversy
- accidentally dropped and broken
- questioned the Australian possession of Papa New Guinean artifact
- exoticized artifact
- Papua New Guinea has more negotiation power