Vaigu dere, jij’e, dahoru’e ohu’o buborianö’e by Jami Sare

The border and the lines running through the work are known as orriseegé or ‘pathways’ and provide a compositional framework for the designs. The infilled black triangles are dahoru’e, Ömie mountains. This design relates to the sacred ancestral geography of Ömie territory. The zigzag designs above the triangles are buborianö’e, the beaks of the Papuan Hornbill (Rhyticeros plicatus). Hornbills are the largest flying birds that can be found in the Ömie mountains. 

The main spiral design is vaigu dere, bush snail shells. In the time of the ancestors, the snail shells were crushed up to use as lime powder in the important social custom of betelnut chewing. The snail shells are surrounded by jij’e, stars. The late Chief of Ematé clan women, Mary Naumo, taught Jami this design 

Title: Vaigu dere, jij’e, dahoru’e ohu’o buborianö’e (Bush snail shells, stars, Ömie mountains and beaks of the Papuan Hornbill) 
Artist: Jami Sare
Medium: Natural pigments on nioge (barkcloth)
Dimensions (cm): 124.5 x 63.5cm
Hanging device: Timber dowel attached (sewn on with fabric) with two wire loops on either end to hang on two screws or nails
Catalogue Number: 19-004