Wooden bowl with decorative carvings in the shape of a frog or a monitor lizard

Twisting lines
The creature’s body is represented on the bottom of this dish in meandering lines. It is a motif that often appears on objects from the Sentani Lake region. Two types of motifs are found on dishes: lines in an abstract pattern and, as here, lines representing animals. These include frogs and monitor lizards, hornbills or turtles. Various explanations have been offered for the significance of these twisting lines. Some see these as referring to two mythical heroes who travel between heaven and earth using ropes made of clouds. Others see them as referring principally to the infinity of nature, the eternal cycle of life and death.

Sago and fish
The oval dish was used for sago and fish. The ring at the top was to hang the dish when it was not being used. The Tropenmuseum has over twenty of these dishes. Sago is made from the inner pith of the stem of a sago palm. The stem is split open and the soft centre scraped out. The sago is then washed. Women mix this to make porridge or to bake biscuits on hot stones. Fish that was placed on a dish like this would be roasted over an open fire.

circa 53 x 35 x 3,5cm (20 7/8 x 13 3/4 x 1 3/8in.)

Source: collectie.tropenmuseum.nl