Kai ni Kabaru (mouse trap)

item details

NameKai ni Kabaru (mouse trap)

Productioncirca 1980s; Kiribati

Classificationtraps

Materialswood, plant fibre

DimensionsOverall: 510mm (height), 275mm (length), 120mm (depth)

Registration NumberFE012518

Credit lineGift of Wendy Smith, 2010

Overview

This is a kai ni kabaru (mouse trap) from Kiribati. It is made from a short modified piece of bamboo, a string of coconut fibre cord and a short stick.

A Nurse in the Pacific

This kai ni kabaru once belonged to Wendy Smith, a nurse who worked for the Red Cross movement both in New Zealand and overseas for about 21 years. She began working in the Pacific region in 1979, and was in Tonga when Tropical Cyclone Isaac devastated the Ha'apai group of islands in 1982. The cyclone, killed six people, and left 45,000 homeless. Wendy along with colleagues offered several hundred family packages to those devastated by the cyclone.

Aquisition History

This item is part of a small collection of objects associated with Wendy's career that she gifted to Te Papa in 2010.