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Description

Dari (or dhari) feather headdress. Headpiece is shaped like an inverted-U, with a horizontal line through the middle. Three lines extend from the top of the centre line, connecting with the top edge; outer lines are curved, middle line is straight. All pieces are made of cane, wrapped in orange fibre. Headpiece has an outer border of plastic; connected to headpiece with black cane, shaped into a zigzag. White feathers protrude from outer edges of plastic, secured with black fibre; feathers in bottom corners are longer than rest and undecorated. Rest of white feathers have had their ends cut; each has three small triangles on either side and long diagonal lines at the tip. Large red seed is tied to the top centre of the headpiece and has three feathers extending from it. Long grey feather in the middle, framed by smaller white and black ones, is topped with a tuft of white feathers; secured to grey feather with white fibre.

History Of Use

Ceremonial dance headdress (dari), usually worn during the performance of kab kar (a sacred dance). This type of headdress is used across the Torres Strait islands, but each island group has its own distinctive style and significance.

Iconographic Meaning

The white feathers (once from sea birds, now from commercially produced geese or turkey feathers) represent peace. The cut pattern of the feathers represent the shape of fish tails; the 'raba raba' (long central feather) used to be made using the long tail feather from the frigate bird. The top tuft of white feathers represents the 'sik' (ocean white caps). The seed is usually the 'wada' (reddish kolap). The zigzag cane work represents the 'sai sai' (fish traps). The inner curves represent 'irau' (eyebrows).