Three late Mendi payback doll. Mendi people, Southern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea.Of typical form, the three female dolls made of mud and white clay over a wooden frame, the faces with expressive features and indications of teeth, wearing necklaces of jobes tear seeds and fiber skirts at the waist. Old pieces of net bags attached to the tops of the heads. Overall somewhat darkened patina.These figures Often referred to as payback dolls were made by the Mendi people and served as visceral reminders of individuals killed in battle. The figures of this type were often kept in a group to recall deaths that needed to be avenged. In some cases these figures would be destroyed after a successful revenge raid however over time they began to be sold to westerners as curios. These examples were likely made after tribal warfare ended for the most part in the Highlands, and images of this type were made simply as memorial figures of deceased relatives without much importance. These were often sold to visitors after they were named and used for a time. Acquired by Marc Seidler in the Southern Highlands. The largest 2 dolls are 13 inches tall, the smaller is 11.75 inches tall.

Good/ Fragile, delicate objects.