Ceremonial post; Jaraï culture, Vietnam, late 19th - early 20th century.

Ceremonial post; Jaraï culture, Vietnam, late 19th - early 20th century.
Carved wood.
Measurements: 199 cm (height).
These imposing sculptures were carved on poles that were placed around the tombs of distinguished individuals. After the death and burial of these individuals, the tombs were surrounded by personal objects and belongings significant to the deceased. During an initial period, which was usually relatively brief, food offerings were placed daily on the tomb.
Months or even years after this initial stage, once the family had gathered the necessary resources to finance the ritual sacrifices of buffaloes and pigs, a large final farewell ceremony was organized. This event, which could last up to a week, included the installation of carved poles such as the one mentioned above. After this ceremony, it was believed that the spirit of the deceased would leave the site for good to join other spirits in the ancestral forest or in a ghost town, never to return. At that moment, the tomb was symbolically abandoned and was no longer visited by relatives. The carved posts were then left for nature to reclaim them.
The Jaraï or Dega people are an indigenous Austronesian culture and ethnic group native to the central highlands of Vietnam. The Jaraï are modern descendants of the Champa, along with other groups in the region. Being part of the Zomia region, which includes all the indigenous peoples of the highlands along the mountain ranges from the Tibetan plateau to all areas of the northern Indochinese peninsula, the Jaraï may belong to a very ancient migration from western and central Asia.