My mother found it in a crumbling garden shed at the edge of a lakeside property my parents purchased from a retired Navy admiral near Norfolk VA in the early 1950s. She carefully cleaned it with paint remover and applied some sort of brown stain. I was with her when she found it.
Any idea on your navy admiral's history? If your parent's bought it in the '50s, that's 70 years right there. Maybe he picked up wood-carving and emulated the fish of one region in the style or with wood from another.
I'll show it to am archaeologist I know that specializes in Native American culture
I think it’s Indonesian. My friend goes to Bali a couple of times a year to buy items for her shop. A lot of it is similar to that. Possibly mahogany or rosewood. Beautifully crafted I have to say
Do you know what kind of wood it is?
I'm guessing - Hawaiian. The fins look like oars - Navy, Pearl Harbor posting.