The crocodile is an extremely important ancestor to the Iatmul of the middle Sepik River region. The Iatmul believe they were spawned by a huge crocodile, and the land they occupy is the back of this animal. The open-ended design carved into both sides of this hand drum represent the gaping jaws of two crocodiles, signifying the two major components of the cosmos: the sky and the earth. In this example, the handle, which links the two worlds, is also a crocodile.
Kundu drums are used to provide accompaniment to clan songs that are sung at ceremonies, funerals, the inauguration of a new canoe, and at the completed construction of a clan house. The drum's sound is closely associated with the supernatural as it represents the voices of spirits and ancestors.
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<P>The crocodile is an extremely important ancestor to the Iatmul of the middle Sepik River region. The Iatmul believe they were spawned by a huge crocodile, and the land they occupy is the back of this animal. The open-ended design carved into both sides of this hand drum represent the gaping jaws of two crocodiles, signifying the two major components of the cosmos: the sky and the earth. In this example, the handle, which links the two worlds, is also a crocodile.</P><P>Kundu drums are used to provide accompaniment to clan songs that are sung at ceremonies, funerals, the inauguration of a new canoe, and at the completed construction of a clan house. The drum's sound is closely associated with the supernatural as it represents the voices of spirits and ancestors. </P>
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