Birrikitji Gumana was a Yolŋu artist and ceremonial leader, and a pivotal figure in the cultural and political history of Arnhem Land. As leader of the Dhal-waŋu clan of the Yirritja moiety, he held extensive ceremonial knowledge and was deeply committed to preserving Yolŋu law and ancestral traditions. Born decades before the establishment of the Yirrkala Mission, he witnessed the full impact of European colonisation, including the 1911 massacre at Gän-gan-, where he discovered the bodies
of his deceased relatives. Gumana was a renowned bark painter, creating works that conveyed the sacred stories of his homeland, particularly those associated with the creation ancestor, Barama and the sacred billabong at Gän-gan-. He was a senior contributor to the 1962 Yirrkala Church Panels and a strong advocate for Yolŋu land rights.
This highly decorated carved and painted figure of an unknown ancestor is distinguished by its diamond-shaped body paint designs and miniature ceremonial belongings. A small ceremonial dillybag decorated in lorikeet feathers hangs around its
neck. Ornaments appear on the upper arms and beneath its chin. In its mouth it carries a feathered length of string. The softwood used for this sculpture has enabled Gumana to fashion the figure’s small hands. The pattern of interlocking diamonds, specific to Gamana’s clan group, continue to be painted on the bodies of ceremonial participants at various locations in Arnhem Land.