These food bowls are part of a larger collection originating from the Sawos people in East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea. Each highly decorated utilitarian bowl is made by women who construct them by coiling method. Men decorate the bowls by incising curvilinear and arciform designs mirrored on two or more sides of the bowls; outstanding motifs mimic nature or are representative of spirits. After the women low fire the bowls, the men heavily apply natural red, yellow and white pigments. The bowls, despite their elaborateness, are used for everyday eating and when not in use they are stored with their openings towards the ground to ensure visibility of their beautiful designs. Sawos bowls are found throughout the middle Sepik river region because they are traded to neighboring villages for fish, tobacco and other goods.