Sparring club of black ebony wood (Diospyros species), incised linear patterns filled with white pigment; sword-shaped with truncated tip. 77 cm long, 10 cm wide. Used in informal fights, village brawls, arguments over gardens, pigs, women, sorcery, and breaches of etiquette; not used in formal warfare. Sometimes carried in mortuary ceremonies and annual feasts.
Donor:
Bronislaw Malinowski and University Appropriation
Collection place:
Milne Bay Province, Papua Region, Papua New Guinea
Culture or time period:
Massim
Collector:
Bronislaw Malinowski
Collection date:
1914-1920
Materials:
Ebony (wood)
Taxon:
Diospyros
Object type:
ethnography
Object class:
Clubs (weapons)
Function:
1.7 Fighting, Warfare, and Social Control
Accession date:
1965
Department:
Oceania
Loans:
S1985-1986 #47: Peabody Museum of Natural History (Yale Univ.) (April 1, 1986–July 31, 1986), S1985-1986 #48: Jagiellonian University, Poland (October 1, 1986–March 31, 1987), S1985-1986 #49: Warsaw Museum of Asia and the Pacific (1987–1987), and S1985-1986 #9: Arizona State Museum (September 20, 1985–February 7, 1986)