Sepik Orator's Stool: Symbol of Ancestral Wisdom

An orators stool, Sepik Region, Papua New Guinea, a figural ceremonial stool carved from Kwila wood decorated with applied clay, money cowrie shells, woven fibre and vegetable pigment paint, 226 cm high. Other Notes: This artifact is known as an Orator's stool and was used by the Iatmul people to the north of the Sepik and Chambri Lakes, Papua New Guinea., Each Haus Tambaran (cult house) has such a stool which is used only on ceremonial speech making occasions when the Orator strikes the seat part with a bundle of leaves to emphasise his main points. The Orator's stool represents the collective wisdom of the clan's departed ancestors who return at the time of such ceremonies to guide and instruct the discussions.