Monster

A dark, drizzly day today, so I am resorting to my occasional series on eclectic exotic items in my house.  This carved wooden group of sea monsters is from the Trobriands, part of the Solomon Islands east of Papua New Guinea.  I was there in September 2018.

We were on a French ship that anchored off a small village, with no roads to anywhere.  The locals were fishermen and subsistence farmers.  They were happy and well-fed, but earned no money, which they needed for medicine and education.  Somehow they had managed to persuade a couple of ships like ours to call each year.  They laid on traditional dancing on the beach and a craft market, which brought some cash into the village.  I bought this carving for the asking price of US$50, which was enough to pay for a year of schooling for the carver's son.

Members of my camera club may recognise the extra which is a photo I took of the village children earlier the same day.  It won one of our competitions :-)