Te bunna wi ni baneawa

Te bunna wi ni baneawa. Neck ornament of milk fish bones. This is part of a neck ornament that would make up te bunna wi ni baneawa. This is made from three material components: te kora (coconut sennit fibre cordage), two wiin kewe kua (porpoise teeth) and the bones from the head of the baneawa (milk fish; chanos chanos). A braided kora makes up the neck band. The bones vary in size but are similar in shape. One end of the bone is wide in shape and the opposite features a sharp tapered end upon closer inspection. There are a few among the series that show a forked end. The wide end has a drilled circular perforation where a strand of the braided kora has been threaded through. The wiin te kua kewe features at the end of the kora and series of milk fish bones. They are white in comparison to the off-white bones of the milk fish and one appears to be fractured resulting in a missing point. The name for this style of neck ornament portrays its elements of significance, protection and a reflection of the wearers social status in society.