A "sago" peg.

A split peg for fastening sheets of sago palm bark together into troughs to wash the flour out the pounded pith of the sago palm. Sago flour is the main staple food in many parts of New Guinea. The peg is decorated with a superbly carved ancestor face wearing a lofty wagnen or initiates crest above the head.

Literature: Published :
Meyer, Anthony ]P.: OCEANIC ART / OZEANISCHES KUNST / ART OCEANIEN. Konemann, Koln. 1995. Fig. 312, page 282.

Wosera People, Southern Abelam, Middle Sepik River, PNG, Melanesia. Wood & cane. 37,3 cm. 19"'/20"' century.