Suinigata

A snake bone necklace, threaded on wire, made from the backbone of a Pacific Boa (Candoia bibroni). Necklaces like this were worn as neck ornaments by chiefs in the highlands of eastern Viti Levu. They were made from the vertebra of sacred snakes, which were raised in rubble-filled pits, or among the stones of a bure kalou (spirithouse) mound, for consumption by priests and chiefs during religious rituals. Length: 97.5cm.

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