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This elaborately carved wooden box is called a wakahuia.
It is a Maori feather box from New Zealand. Such boxes were traditionally
made by the sons of chiefs as a sign of accomplishment. They were
designed to contain feathers, pendants, combs, and other precious
ornaments that were used to adorn the head. The box was suspended
from the rafters and viewed from below – the underside is
therefore often elaborately carved with geometric motifs and human
figure forms (manaia in Maori). This box was purchased
from an antiques dealer in Oxford in 1927.
View
database record 1927.81.1
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