Standing female figure (ibeji) on flat base. Female stands upright, arms curved to connect with thighs. Long fingers carved into hands. Thin rounded stomach under pointed breasts. Stylized face is round with wide lips, flat nose, and 3 thin lines on each cheek. Eyes are open with round pupils and dark irises. Ears stick out from head. Thin headdress carved with ripple pattern curves around back and narrows before flaring out at neck. Top band connects to vertical bands carved with same pattern. Traces of blue pigment on eyes and headdress. Feet have faint imprint of long toes.

Standing male figure (ibeji) on square base. Wide shouldered male figure stands upright, arms curved to connect with the hips, protruding phallus. Face is stylized and intricately carved, with angular ridged nose, large eyes with carved decoration across centre, three groves down each cheek, and ears that connect with the neck. Headdress is tall, consisting of several joined V shapes that meet at top centre, connecting with a round piece, pointed at bottom, circular and carved at top.

Standing female figure (ibeji) on square base. Female figure stands upright, arms curved to connect with thighs. No opening between arms and body. Flat stomach below pointed breasts. Intricately carved face with open mouth, angular nose, and 3 ovals carved on each cheek, each with a line down the middle. Small squares across the middle of each eye. Ears are flattened against head. Tall headdress consists of 4 sections split by vertical bands. Each section is decorated with 2 bands of horizontal lines, 3 on the bottom and 2 on the top.

Standing wood figure (ibeji) on circular base. Wide shouldered male stands upright, arms curved to connect with thighs. Long fingers with nails are carved on each hand. Wide shoulders and thin stomach are smooth, with only belly button protruding. Phallus between legs. Long flat feet are carved with long toes. Minimally carved face has small holes for eyes, and indents for nose and mouth. Ears are flattened against side of head. Porous headdress is carved with vertical lines. Back is angular with protruding rounded buttocks. Figure is wearing a necklace with half white and half green beads around two red beads.

Standing wood figure (ibeji) of a male; arms curve to connect with thighs. Long fingers with nails are carved on each hand. Slightly protruding stomach and chest are smooth without any decoration, as is back. Phallus protrudes from mid-section. Angular foot is carved with horizontal lines. Face is highly stylized with open mouth showing square teeth, 3 vertical lines on each cheek, angular nose, long ears flattened against head, and open eyes with metals studs for pupils. Figure is wearing a necklace strung with mostly blue, white and red beads. Central beads are white and yellow and black and yellow. Headdress tapered to thin point above head and is carved with diagonal lines and triangles. Rounded triangle drops over forehead.

Small, rectangular tapa cloth adhered to a board of the same size. Patterns are geometric designs in black on the raw background. In the centre of the piece are three large images: the middle is a repeating geometric design surrounded by raw space with S-shapes, dots, wavy and straight lines, and thick black triangles. Next is a border consisting of triangular patterns, thick black lines and dots in the middle of the triangles. The next design includes 4-sided shapes and triangles made out of dots. Next there is a design with a raw space centre surrounded by wavy lines. The next image is repeated on both sides of the piece. It includes a circular image consisting of a flower in the centre, 4-sided shapes, wavy lines, on the four corners there are ¼ circles with triangles made our of raw-space squares. There is a border around the three large images that includes triangles made out of thick black lines. Next there is another border consisting of mirrored triangles, dots and short lines. The outside border includes a repeating deign of straight lines, wavy lines and triangular shapes.

Small, rectangular tapa cloth adhered to a board of the same size. Patterning is black geometric designs on the raw background. In the centre of the piece are four-sided shapes with a black border. On the outside of this are three stacked triangles. From the centre point outwards the designs are mirrored on the long sides and later on the outside. The next design out from centre-point is a black triangle under another triangle. Topping this are two black motifs followed by three wavy lines. The next design has heavy black wavy lines and is in a triangular shape. Next there is a large section that includes diamond shapes, triangles, wavy lines and the use of blank space. Bordering the object is a narrow design with wavy thin and thick lines, including arrows and dots.

Small rectangular tapa cloth adhered to a board of the same size. Patterning is geometric designs in black ink on raw, uncoloured background. Centre panel is made up of diamond shapes filled with a variety of patterns. Surrounding this are triangle shapes coloured rust-orange, along with densely patterned triangles. The tapa is bordered by a repeating motif of black and rust designs on natural ground.

Set of wooden clappers and accompanying cloth bag (part b). Instrument consists of three long, rectangular pieces of lacquered wood, the topmost with a central raised spine, the others flat. An inscription in Chinese characters is carved into the wood of the top piece, filled with green paint. The clappers are joined together with a thick, braided red cotton rope looped through two holes bored through each piece of wood, and decoratively knotted on one side with tassels falling from the ends. The cotton carrying bag is blue with a white pattern of foliage and dots, and has a pull cord at the top.

Bannerstones

In the woodlands regions of North America, stone and quartzes were materials used extensively for ritual and utilitarian items. A bannerstone likely had a practical function as a counterweight on an atlatl, a long wooden shaft with a hooked end that was used to add power to a hunter’s arm when throwing a spear. The bannerstone’s wings may have provided balance. Bannerstones are often found far from stone sources, indicating they were part of a large trade network.