Te Ntabo

Te Ntabo. Red shell neck ornament. This is a pendant that has been cut from the shell of koikoinanti (Spondylous ducalis). It is convex in form and shaped like an almond. The convex surface has been smoothed to show a slightly polished area. A shallow furrow runs along an angle across the exterior. Opposite, the concave surface shows the remains of the original interior of the shell and is of a transparent white colour where the red exterior can be seen. The depth of the shell material can be seen from where it has been cut into an almond shape. The convex surface is made up of dark red and white lines that curve across the pendant. A circular perforation has been drilled into the more curved end of the almond shaped ornament. A two-ply braid of dark brown human hair and/or kora (coconut sennit fibre cordage) would be threaded through the drilled perforation to form a neck band. It would be worn around the neck, placed above the bunna (throat ornament of human hair) and worn mostly by men. The koikoinanti can also be referred to as 'the small shell of the spirits' and is regarded a highly valuable possession.