Perth couple share love of collecting artefacts
Author: Richard Brewster | Posted: 18th May, 2015
An extraordinary collection of Australian indigenous, Indonesian, Papua New Guinea and oceanic artefacts will go under the hammer from 6.30pm Wednesday May 20 at Mossgreen 926-930 High Street, Armadale.
The collection is owned by Perth-based couple Marc and Elena Pinto who share diverse cultural backgrounds, a passion of travel and inherited love of collecting.
Of Singaporean, Portuguese, British, Indonesian and Chinese descent, Marc was raised in Singapore.
His mother collected Chinese ceramics, which were displayed in the family home. Both his parents were in the travel business, where Marc obtained his love of travel.
Influenced by his Indonesian grandfather’s stories of the indigenous Dayaks in North Borneo, Marc had his first tattoo at age 15 and is now a well-known tattoo artist and owner of the renowned Primitive Tattoo Studio in central Perth –with a penchant for tribal art.
Elena was born to an Italian father and Dutch mother, both of whom were avid collectors of fine European art and Middle Eastern carpets.
The auction features a large range of artefacts including a shield and club (lot 4) with a signed letter from Eric McConnille saying they were given to Bendigo-based Vicrail train driver ‘Pop’ Jones by King Billy – believed to be the last of the Loddon Aboriginal tribe – near Bendigo in the early 20th century.
King Billy probably belonged to Dja Dja Warrung group and is presumably the same person referred to in an article in the Bendigo Advertiser and reprinted in The Argus of Friday May 31, 1872.
The article reflected the settler population’s belief it was witnessing the end of a civilisation, claiming that King Billy was the last of the Loddon tribe, which once had been one of the strongest in Victoria.
Other items include a ratten woven basket baby carrier from Mahakam River in Indonesia (lot 135) an Iban mask from West Kalimantan (lot 137), two 19th century korwar figures from Cenderwash Bay in Papua New Guinea (lots 121 and 122), and a late 19th century rare figurative club from Easter Island.
