Sago Eating Bowl

Conical bowl. Coiled construction, carved and painted on the outside. Patterns are red, yellow, and white, outlined in burnished black. Inside is terracotta with smudged areas from firing. An eating bowl, for individual portions of sago pudding. Supported by a woven fiber ring when in use.

The principal pattern consists of four heart-shaped human faces with alternating orientation, surmounted by concentric pointed ellipses and separated near the rim by large spirals. The two faces closest to the center are connected by a chain-like four diamond motif. There is a chain of similar diamonds around the rim. The faces have small round eyes and large “anchor” noses and are textured with punctate markings, as are the carved ellipses and spirals.