Hooks from the Sepik River region in Papua New Guinea are both everyday objects and intended for ceremonial use. Suspended from the ceiling by a string, they float freely in the room, with bags or baskets attached to them.The size and painting of the 1350 mm high, fully sculpted, carved female figure suggests that it was used ceremonially in men's houses. The piece originates from the Iatmul people from the middle Sepik River. Their society is divided into two halves (moieties), which are in turn subdivided into individual clans whose origins are explained in myths. Each clan has a hook like this with a proper name, embodying either spirit beings or mythological clan founders.The colours, which are made of earth, shell-bearing limestone and ochre, have special significance. White and red belong to the sun and to the sky, while black is assigned to the earth. Heaven and earth (or mother) are simultaneously the two moieties that form the dualistic principle of social order.