Vanuatu War Club
| Vanuatu War Club | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Information | |
| Weapon type: | Club |
| Use: | Weapon, professional weapon |
| Region of origin / author: |
Vanuatu - Archipelago , ethnic groups of the archipelago |
| Distribution: | Vanuatu Archipelago |
| Overall length: | about 81 cm |
| Handle: | Wood |
| Lists on the subject | |
| Vanuatu War Club | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Information | |
| Weapon type: | Club |
| Use: | weapon |
| Region of origin / author: |
Vanuatu , ethnic groups of Vanuatu |
| Distribution: | Vanuatu |
| Overall length: | about 78 cm |
| Blade width: | about 5 cm |
| Handle: | Wood |
| Lists on the subject | |
The Vanuatu War Club is a striking weapon used by the Vanuatu people . Two different forms are described.
Longer shape
The war club is made of dark hardwood. It is round and widens from the pommel to the hammer head. The top of the head is mushroom-shaped. Shortly before the upper end of the impact head several ball-like projections are worked out. The entire club is polished. The pommel is spherical, giving it a phallus-like shape. The Vanuatu War Club was used by the ethnic groups of the Vanuatu Archipelago (New Hebrides until 1980).
Shorter shape
This war club is straight and made of hardwood. At the upper end there is a striking head that is wider than the shaft of the club. The impact head is round and provided with several projections that are intended to increase the impact of the club. At the lower or also at the upper end of the shaft, pointed, mushroom-shaped ends are often attached, which are used for decoration and for punching. There are different versions that vary in length and decoration. Felix Speiser specifies a maximum length of 100 cm for the shorter shape.
literature
- Felix Speiser : About club shapes in Melanesia. In: Journal of Ethnology. Reimer, Berlin. Vol. 64, 1932, pp. 75-105. ISSN 0044-2666
- Felix Speiser: Ethnographic Materials from the New Hebrides and the Banks Islands. Kreidel, Berlin 1923. (English translation: Ethnology of Vanuatu. An early twentieth century study. Crawford House, Bathurst NSW 1991, ISBN 1-86333-021-6 , pp. 204–209 and plates 57–60. Reprints 1996 and 1998 . Limited preview in Google Book Search)
Web links
- Vanuatu war club at Tribalmania : Example of a long club from the New Hebrew island of Efate
- several pictures and brief descriptions at Oriental-Arms
- From the collection of the British Museum : Example of a long club from Tanna Island
Individual evidence
- ↑ Picture and short description at Oriental Arms (English, accessed on October 19, 2009)
- ^ Felix Speiser: Ethnology of Vanuatu. 1991, p. 205.