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Photo credit: Dr. John Tyman,Cultures in Context |
由Misaki Imagawa
It’s desert time! Summer is finally here, so how about some chilled sago pudding topped with pineapple slices, passion fruit, and a subtle hint of lemon syrup? But wait, what issago? We learn something new every day: sago looks and tastes very similar to tapioca but is really something entirely different. Tapioca is a starch taken from cassava roots mainly in tropical areas of South America, while sago is starch extracted from trunks of sago palm trees in Southeast Asia. Although tapioca is more commonly known, an intriguing culture and art form revolving around sago can be found among the Sawos people of Papua New Guinea.
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Sagostarch is an important dietary component of the people living along the Sepik River that runs through Papua New Guinea. It is used for puddings, breads, noodles, and pancakes. Here’s a tidbit for food conscious readers – sago has little nutritional value. The locals get their vitamins from other sources such as traded meat and fresh fish from the river. In order to prepare, cook and serve sago, traditional pottery dishes are crafted in a collaborative effort by men and women. The most prominent of these dishes is thekamana, or the sago eating dish, a conical vessel with an intricately decorated exterior. PRIMITIVE actually has a wonderful collection of kamana, and as an aside they look wonderful mounted on the wall, like plates.
The process of making kamana is a joint effort between men and women. Women first create the bowl with soft clay, coiling up thin strands in the shape of the dish and smoothing the sides. Once dried, the men polish the inside of the bowl and use a chip-carving technique to decorate the outside with shallow reliefs. The women then low-fire the pottery; and men complete the process by painting the bowls with natural pigments of red, yellow and white.
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The patterns incised on the exterior are often geometric and curvilinear – designs inspired by the natural world. At times they can depict the face or form of a spiritual being as well as iconic designs endemic to the people. Nevertheless, intricately carved kamana are not necessarily ceremonial bowls, but instead, everyday dishes. When in use, the bowl is held upright by a ring of plaited cane to accommodate its cone-shaped form. When not in use, kamana are placed in an upside down or inverted position so the designs can be appreciated.
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传统上，卡马纳（Kamana）的意图不是水果和糖浆的最高沙漠，而是美食和艺术之间的联系确实由原始的这些碗提供。没有两个西马碗看起来像一样，但是平滑的线条，有趣的设计和地球色调使它们都引人入胜且吸引人。他们独特的外观是他们越来越受到收藏家和爱好者的追捧的原因之一。尽管Sago Bowls的早期收藏可以追溯到20世纪初，但对Kamana的比较，以及在风格，设计或工艺方面的差异很小的一世纪。这些碗的创造是一种受人尊敬的，受人尊敬的艺术形式，经过几代人，并由锯夫人精心练习。随着时间的流逝，它们的非凡质量一直保持不变。值得注意的是，它们不是为旅游市场生产的，而是为人们自己使用。也许这就是使Sago Bowls真正的收藏品 - 以及今天更加珍贵的原因。亚博国际官网登录
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简单的盘子还是精心制作的收藏品？- 西米碗(327 KB)
Sago bowls are ceramic dishes made by the Sawos people of Papua New Guinea. Though used as utilitarian bowls, these unique conical vessels also hold great artistic and collectible value for their intricate geometric and curvilinear designs inspired by nature.
