Necklace Currency
ClassificationsClothing and Adornments-neck ornaments
Dateearly to mid 20th Century
Made AtSandaun Province, Papua New Guinea
MediumBoar's teeth, bone and plant fiber
Credit LineLoan Courtesy of Jon and Linda Walters
Object numberEL.2003.4.139
DescriptionPigs are an important form of currency throughout Papua New Guinea. Whether for food, in bride price exchange, in trade, or given as a reward, all parts of the pig were seen as money, and a means of exchange. Pig teeth, like other animal and human teeth, were considered a form of currency as well as an object of adornment, and could be used to purchase all kinds of items. When worn as a necklace, pigs’ teeth could also possibly represent one man’s theft of a pig from another man, a common practice that served as a reminder of the power and status of the individual.On View
On view
mid 20th Century
20th Century
mid 20th Century
mid 20th Century
mid 20th Century
late 19th to mid 20th Century
20th Century
early to mid 20th Century
December 1966
