Large oblong basket woven fishing trap with rounded rectangualr opening tapering into a pointed cone at end. The trap is woven with thin, closely packed reeds bound virtically through horizontal frames that form the cages structure

See more objects with the tag fish, domestic, food preparation, water, hunting, women, baskets, woven, fishing, tool, work, cone.

See more objects with the color darkslategrey darkolivegreen sienna darkkhaki silver or see all the colors for this object.

Object Timeline

	We acquired this object.
-0001	We photographed this object.
1929	Work on this object began.
2014	We exhibited this object.
2024	You found it!

Fish Trap (Papua New Guinea), Before 1929

This is a Fish Trap.

This object is not part of the Cooper Hewitt's permanent collection. It was able to spend time at the museum on loan from National Museum of Natural History as part of Tools: Extending Our Reach.

It is dated Before 1929. Its medium is plaited rattan, sago-palm ribs, cane.

A central feature of fishing technology in the Aird Hill region of the Gulf of Papua in Papua New Guinea, conical traps such as this one are used and made by women. Working in groups and deploying large weirs, women block coastal streams and creeks at high tide. When the tide begins to recede, one group beats the water, while others move with their traps through the blocked waterway catching fish, turtles, and crustaceans. The vertical frame of this trap is made of the midrib of a sago palm leaf. The stripped midribs were bound and spaced with fourteen bands of sugar cane cut, stripped, and braided into cordage. The trap holds two lengths of unmodified cane around its outside, giving it structural strength. The weaving embodied in this fish trap underpins a range of objects, from houses to baskets and ritual objects. This style of fish trap is still used throughout the Gulf of Papua today, alongside nylon fishing nets.

It is credited Transferred from the US Department of Agriculture and Dr. E. W. Brandes, Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, E344858.

A fine dark red encircling fishing net made of machine manufactured tetoron polyester which consists of pairs of twisted threads that connect to form the net by crossing through each other in a series of repeating diamonds. The net is folded in a series of rippling bulges to show the strength and lightness of the polyester yarn and the fact that it is entirely knotless. In the mid-lower right is a small black rectangle that is filled with multi-colored squares of white, deep blue, orange, brown, green, peach, red, grey, pale blue, yellow, purple, magenta, lime, lilac, cyan, gold and turquoise.

Fishing Net, Encircling Fishing Net
polyester.
Gift of Toray Industries, Inc..
2003-22-1

Covered Fruit Basket Fruit Basket
iridized, glazed hand-rolled, cut, and assembled porcelain.
Gift of Suzanne W. Todd in Memory of William & Beatrice Votaw .
2011-37-1-a,b

Birdcage Birdcage
tin-glazed earthenware, metal wire, metal.
Gift of Eleanor and Sarah Hewitt.
1916-19-60-a,b

Our curators have highlighted 4 objects that are related to this one. Here are three of them, selected at random:

White Side Table, from The Silent Village Collection

White Side Table, from The Silent Village Collection
ash wood, metal, krion, ropes, nylon strings, feathers, fur, leather, printed....
Courtesy of Galerie Kreo.
45.2015.1

This wooden structure is taller than it is wide, with light brown wood comprising the cage part and black lacquered wood base on bottom. The cage walls are made up of thin, round, uniformly spaced rods, closely arranged. The base frame is made of four rectangular bars: two parallel bars laid on top of two more parallel bars, in the opposing direction, making a square base. This arrangement is repeated twice again in the middle for support, using slightly smaller pieces of wood to hold up the thin rods of the cage walls. Between the middle frames is a concealed door, only indicated by a short horizontal wood handle running across the lower of the two central supports. The top frame is made in the same four bar placement except for additional bar running through center. The entire structure is attached to black lacquered wood base made of a simple square on top of curved legs, angled outward at each corner.

Cricket Cage And Base (Japan), late 19th century
rattan, bamboo, lacquered wood (base); fiber, paper, silk, feathers....
Gift of Eleanor and Sarah Hewitt.
1916-40-3-a,b

High Shelf, from The Silent Village Collection

High Shelf, from The Silent Village Collection
ash wood, metal, krion, ropes, nylon strings, feathers, fur, leather, printed....
Courtesy of Galerie Kreo.
45.2015.2

Its dimensions are

H x W x D: 24.1 x 40 x 78.7 cm (9 1/2 in. x 15 3/4 in. x 31 in.)

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Tools: Extending Our Reach.

Short URL http://cprhw.tt/o/48JcB/
Accession Number 15.2012.16
Object ID 35457233