Papa hou (feather box), 1800-1900,
from Auckland region, wood. Bequest of K A Webster, 1958

CLOSE WINDOW

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Hung high

Papa hou (feather boxes) housed tapu (sacred) head adornments, so they were stored up high out of harm’s way. When the papa hou was hung from the rafters of the whare (house), its elaborately carved underside came into view.