Agku
LOCAL NAME:
Agku
ENGLISH NAME:
Snail basket
DESCRIPTION:
A round, woven basket that is used to collect fish, tadpoles and snails from the rice fields. It is made from rattan and bamboo (anes/anis).
COMMONLY USED BY/IN:
Bontoc
MATERIAL COMPOSITION:
Rattan, Bamboo
ITEM CONSTRUCTION:
Basket weaving
DIMENSIONS:
Diameter: 34cm x 34.3cm
Height: 3cm
ACQUISITION YEAR:
2021
RESEARCH DATA:
A woven basket called agku in Bontoc, Mt. Province. It is used as a sieve for capturing edible snails, and shells found in the rice paddies. Snails are caught following the rice harvest when the stubble is cleaned out of the paddy fields. The rice terraces are kept filled with water all year, unlike other paddies in many rice-growing areas which are allowed to dry out as the rice ripen. Jenks (1905) noted that basketry weaving is one of the tasks done by men and women to supplement the work schedule around cultivation of rice and sweet potato.
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