A reliquary for defense rituals.
It is used during rituals for defense against fierce spirits and human enemies, such as the following: bahbah, headhunting enactment ritual; hagawhaw, defense ritual occasioned by bad dreams, disease among livestock, lost livestock, bad omens, a violent death; opah, a ritual to retrieve one's spirit from the sun. The following items are kept in the container: an old bat net, inama, tāwang; one or two barricade spikes, hūga; small bones, feathers and blood of sacrificed chickens; betel nuts, leaves and lime in a small container for spirits to chew; a small drinking bowl used for rice beer offered to spirits; skeletal head of a poisonous snake, tu'ū'an owl. This reliquary may be owned by either the rich or poor. This reliquary is made of woven bamboo with a lid. Some are square, from about 25 - 40 cm. and 15 cm. deep; others are rectangular, typically about 25 cm. by 40 cm. and 15 cm. deep.