Timbuwara emblem, Wiru Southern Highlands Province, Papua Papua New Guinea Plant fiber basketry, ochre clay pigment. Dimensions:101 x 51.5 cm Provenance: Chris Boylan Collection, Sydney Private collection, acquired in 2010 Before the arrival of the first Western explorers, the Southern Highlands were the scene of various spiritual cults. In the heart of the Pangia region, the Wiru practiced an ancestral cult called timbu, which manifested itself in the creation of timbuwara: flat woven figurines. The term "Timbu", evoking the sky, could suggest a veneration of the mysterious "Sky Beings", essential in Highland cosmology, inspiring both awe and respect among the inhabitants. "Wara", in the singular, etymologically means both "spear" and "guardian", symbolically evoking strength and protection. The ritual practice of timbu was aimed at rebalancing natural forces. To this end, the Wiru erected a ritual structure around a central pole called a tungi, decorated with the jaws of pigs. The men would then perform a dance around the tungi, wearing the emblematic timbuwara on their heads, before moving the pole to another area of the village for the sacrificial ceremony of hundreds of pigs. These timbuwara, veritable works of art in fragile basketry, were, as this example shows, two-dimensional figures with massive trunks pierced by a hole symbolizing the umbilicus, slender limbs and slightly raised arms. Their oval heads, framed by circular ears, featured a central mouth opening.