| caption: |
Chapter One. The Material Background |
| caption: |
wood-carving, a Konyak speciality |
| text: |
Wood-carving was also exclusively a male activity, and no other Naga tribe was as expert in woodwork as the Konyaks. Their public buildings were decorated with carved figures and high reliefs of great force and vitality, and those who were especially gifted as sculptors developed their art in the service of the men's houses, decorating posts and beams and the huge log gongs with realistic carvings. Men modeled the small wooden heads which were worn as ornaments by head-takers, carved such small objects as tobacco pipes, combs, and hairpins, and made all the wooden utensils which were necessary in everyday life. Even small boys were often to be seen whittling away at a piece of wood, producing crude figures of men and animals. |
