Description (CMS Description)
Pair of models of a spirit house made of plaited coconut fibre.
Event Date 1/6/1996
Author: maa

Context (CMS Context)
Thirty-Fourth Annual Report of the Antiquarian Committee to the Senate with Lists of Accessions for the Years 1917 and 1918 [6 March 1919], List of Accessions from January 1 to December 31, 1918: '1918.213. Additions to the Gordon Collection: (1) Hair ornaments of coco-palm film; (2-13) twelve necklaces with pendants ground out of sperm whale teeth, including one of unusually large size and one with peculiar taper pendants; (14-16) three breast-ornaments: composite plates of irregular oval outline with serrated edges, formed of whale-tooth ivory plaques and centres of pearl-shell with ivory inlay; one unusually large (10" x 10".8) with circular shell centre, bearing an angular pendant device of ivory; one (7".8 x 7".8) with square centre inlaid with a pair of crossed ivory fillets forming a St Andrew's cross, and four roundlets; and one (6".5 x 7".8) with oblong centre, bearing a single four-rayed star; (17) a penannular boar's tusk, worn as a pendant by men of position; (18) a bundle of folded lengths of thin, white bark cloth, used for turbans, scarves, etc.; (27) an oblong door-step of hard wood; (28) seven floor-mats: three ornate and four plain; (19) a bale of thick white bark cloth; (20) a large piece of bark cloth bearing a bold design in black and white; (29) a small mat for carrying an indent; (64) a child's paddle; (62) a boy chief's cylindrical club with carved grip; (30) a fan of variegated plaited coconut-leaf; (31) a number of baskets; (32-49) eighteen earthenware vessels of various forms; (50) a carved coconut receptacle for oil; (61) an incised bamboo receptacle for tobacco leaves; (52, 53) two small four legged kava bowls (circular and oval); (51) a carved wooden ring-stand for kava strainer; (54-60) seven unusually large, ground and enamelled coconut drinking-cups; (23-25) three old men's sticks; (21, 22) two fly-whisks of coconut-fibre; (63) a chief's palm-leaf war fan; (66-73) eight tambua (polished sperm whale teeth, used as tokens of good faith) with ornate loop of plaited coconut-fibre: some of the teeth are ground into symmetrical forms and stained red. These tambua were presented to the first Governor of Fiji (Sir Arthur Hamilton Gordon) at the cession of the Islands and on other ceremonial occasions, 1876-1880; (65) a wooden vei-tinka head, inlaid with sperm whale ivory roundels; and (26 a and b) a pair of models of a mbure (spirit-house) made of plaited coconut-fibre cord. The Lord Stanmore.
Event Date 3/10/2012
Author: Lucie Carreau

Context (CMS Context)
Catalogue card reads [handwritten in blue ink:] '1918 213 (26) FIJI. A pair of models of a mbure (spirit house) made of plaited coconut fibre. G. A. M. Hamilton-Gordon. 2nd Baron Stanmore (see 1st Card)'. Two black and white photographs of the object stapled to the back of the card.
Event Date 3/10/2012
Author: Lucie Carreau

Description (CMS Description)
Portable temple or shrine (bure kalou). Foundation of reed wrapped in complex bindings of 3-ply plaited coir cords. The base is square and bound with plaited coir cords forming diamond patterns. On top of the base is placed a square platform onto which is placed the square temple, with an arched door at the front. The roof is pyramidal. A ridge-pole is placed at the top of the roof, protruding on both sides. The bindings are of brown coir, except from the platform (black coir), the door frame of black coir (bound to the rest of the temple with 7 lashings of black coir), the upper part and lower part of the roof (also formed of black coir), the corners of the house and roof (bound with a vertical band of black coir forming two rows of zigzags), and the section of roof holding the ridge pole (black coir). Good condition but a few strands of plaited coir on the ridge-pole, and platform have become detached and needs to be re-bound. Dusty. A large cream label (damaged) found inside the house reads [handwritten in black ink:] 'Model of Spirit House. Lord Stanmore'. Another large cream label attached to the roof reads [stamped in faded black ink, twice:] 'FIJI' and [handwritten in black ink:] 'Model of Spirit House'. A small cream label attached to the roof reads '1918.213 (26 A). Bure. Fiji Islands. Stanmore Colln. 1912'. A small metal label attached to the roof reads [handwritten in white ink:] '1918.213.26 A'.
Event Date 3/10/2012
Author: maa

Context (CMS Context)
Exhibited: 'Chiefs & Governors: Art and power in Fiji', Cambridge MAA, 7 June 2013 - 19 April 2014.
Event Date 25/4/2014
Author: Remke van der Velden

Conservation ()
CON.2013.1 |
Event Date 1/3/2016
Author: maa