Item X 25934 Bag. Oenpelli, Western Arnhem Land, Northern Territory, Australia. pre 1918

Physical Description

A netted bag made with vegetable fibre string with its contents of European fabric, four interlaced armbands tied together with a strip of red cloth and a necklace of glass beads.

Significance

This bag and its contents were shown to Kunwinjku artists from Gunbalanya when they visited the collections at Melbourne Museum in 2004. The group believed the bag belonged to a woman who had passed away, and explained that it would normally have been placed with her when she was laid to rest. In this instance, the artists believed a family member has sold it to Paddy Cahill at Oenpelli.