Gilbert and Ellice Islands the latitude of 5° to 10° south and longitude of 176° to 180°, west of the International Date Line. The Ellice Islands are midway between Hawaii and Australia. The Ellice Islands are recognised as part of the Polynesia subregion of Oceania. In 1606 Pedro Fernandes de Queirós sighted Butaritari and Makin, which he named the Buen Viaje (‘good trip’ in Spanish) Islands. The Gilbert Islands were named in 1820 by a Russian Admiral, Baron Johann von Krusenstern, after a British captain, Thomas Gilbert, who encountered the archipelago in 1788 while exploring an Outer Passage route from Port Jackson to Canton.
Jewellery in the Pacific headdresses of different sorts are all very common items used by Polynesians to adorn themselves. Some pieces, such as the wearing of masks, are only apparent in certain areas, such as Micronesia and with the aborigines of Australia. Breast plates were worn by the Māori, as well as many other small islands in the Pacific. Belts and adornments hung off them, are mainly situated around Papua New Guinea and its neighbours, while nose piercings are also found in that area. Overall, although jewellery pieces in the Pacific are very similar amongst the island nations, they are also varied greatly and