A very rare, and finely decorated carrying pole. The finials carved as human figures representing stylized ancestors holding their hands to their chins. The underside of each figure shows a crenellated ridge representing a canoe-prow. The central section on the upper side of the pole has a rectangular area carved in low relief with stylized human figures (four complete figures and four half figures). Poles of this type and with such extensive and important motifs were the property of high ranking persons and used for carrying food and water in coiled baskets waterproofed with parinarium nut paste. Admiralty Islands, Bismarck Archipelago, PNG, Melanesia. Wood (probably Alstonia) with a fine glossy patina of wear and use. 136 x 6 x 5 cm. Late 19th to very early 20th century. Originally acquired from Norman Hurst, Cambridge.