The imposing original 18th Century 6 1/2 foot hand-sculpted woodcarving sits in the place of honor in the Great Hall of the Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii.

King Kamehameha gave this god credit for his success in uniting the Hawaiian Islands.

As the personal god of King Kamehameha I, this figure was especially made and passed to the succeeding generations of the royal family to preserve the care and safekeeping of the figure.

It is said that the chief kahunas (priests) went deep into the forest to find the wood for this image, blessed it, and returned to the village where the master craftsman was entrusted to do the sculpting of this most revered god.

Only three temple images of this magnitude are in existence today. One is in the Peabody Museum, Salem Massachusetts, and the other in the collection of the British Museum, London England. The finest however, is this one - is the epitome of ancient Hawaiian artifacts with its attention to detail and particular significance to Hawaiian history.