A very rare and ancient statue of a male ancestor from a village altar, carved seated in the crouched position with arms crossed over the knees, characteristic of the ancient arts of the Leti or Babar islands. The sunken eyes were undoubtedly formerly encrusted with shells, and the base of the sculpture is engraved with a scrolling wave and floral motif. The jewels worn by this ancestor (diadem and earrings) represent gold attributes worn by the ancient "nobility", the manufacture of which would have ended around 1880 following an earthquake; these details enable specialists to date such a sculpture before 1880. These statues were carved in a specific hardwood and erected outdoors in the village, atop a structure symbolizing a boat, also carved in wood and measuring over two meters, the whole was held on a large structure (platform of assembled stones), and the clan's founding ancestor or mythical hero, carved with his back straight, came to lean against what must have represented the mast of the mythical boat. Such altars were carved and erected during an annual ritual, necessary for the fertility of the fields for the cultivation of corn in particular, honored with prayers and offerings, celebrating the union of the male sun god (Upuleru) with the mother goddess Earth (Upunusa). See : Beyond The Java Sea-Art of Indonesia's Outer Islands, Smithonian, Taylor and Aragon, 1991 Leti Islands, South Moluccan Archipelago, Lakor Island (Yampuli village), Indonesia 19th century. Hardwood, small visible chips, restoration (gluing of a small broken piece glued to the original piece) at the end of the tiara, very fine age oxidation of the wood, slight age cracks, a label preserved inside the base and glued to the tenon indicating Lakor Yampuli, very fine old patina from erosion and use. H. 40 cm (46 with its monoxyle tenon on the sculpture) Provenance : Philippe Guimiot, Brussels Belgian private collection, acquired from the latter