Artwork information

Gope, kwoi and hohao are all terms for the ancestor boards that are made around the northern Papuan gulf. It is considered that this spirit board was made by the Kerewa people of Goaribari Island.

The pair of eyes are under a widow’s peak design that leads down to the navel at the base of the carving. A feature of this area’s art is that the ancestor’s face is often the predominant subject. (Te Moananui a Kiwa, 2005)