🏠 Bai Meeting Houses
Palau
About This Sacred Site
The bai are traditional Palauan meeting houses that serve as sacred communal spaces for governance, ceremony, and spiritual practice. These distinctive A-frame structures feature elaborate storyboard carvings (bilib) depicting mythological narratives, ancestral stories, and spiritual teachings. The bai were traditionally restricted to titled men and served as centres for decision-making, dispute resolution, and the transmission of sacred knowledge. The most notable surviving bai is in Airai, believed to be the oldest in Palau.
Key Facts
- •Traditional A-frame structures decorated with sacred storyboard carvings
- •The Airai bai is considered the oldest surviving example
- •Storyboards (bilib) depict mythology, history, and spiritual teachings
- •Bai served as centres for governance, ceremony, and sacred knowledge
- •Access was traditionally restricted to titled men of the village
Location
Coordinates: 7.3419, 134.4786
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