An overmodelled skull is a skull covered with various materials to reconstruct the appearance of a human head. This technique of art and religion is described in many countries throughout the ages.
Origins A custom that has existed since the Neolithic era, it is widespread in Oceania and the Near East.Ergul Kodas, Le surmodelage du crâne au Néolithique au Proche-Orient : Approche contextuelle, funéraire et visuelle, Tiempo y sociedad, Num. 18, 2015, pp. 5-45 It originated as a cult of ancestors and consists of covering the dry skull with a plastic material, such as earth, clay, ash, plaster or lime.Fanny Bocquentin, Après la mort, avant l’oubli. Les crânes surmodelés du Levant sud Skulls can be embellished with pigments, jewellery etc. Sometimes, skulls of animals are also over-modelled.Anthony JP Meyer, Oceanic Art, Könemann, 1995, p.382
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References
Articles annexes Skull Papua New Guinean art Plastered human skulls
Bibliography Alain Nicolas, Art papou, Nouvelles Éditions Scala, Paris, 2000 & L'art papou : Austronésiens et Papous de Nouvelle-Guinée (catalogue d'exposition, Musée de Marseille, 2000. Maxime Rovere, Magali Melandri, Rouge kwoma : peintures mythiques de Nouvelle-Guinée : exposition, Paris, Musée du quai Branly, 14 octobre 2008-4 janvier 2009, Réunion des musées nationaux : Musée du quai Branly, Paris, 2009, .
Anthony JP Meyer, Oceanic Art, Könemann, 1995. Arthur C. Aufderheide, Overmodeled Skulls, Heide Press, 2009