Fighting shield ·  Australia · ID: 3038112

Description

bush hardwood, reddish brown patina, traces of a striped painting backside, stonecut linear grooved pattern on the frontside, remains of painting in stripes on the backside, carved with handle, slightly dam.;
Aboriginals over a wide area of the Australian continent used shields, but probably only on special occasions. They were rarely carried daily. Broader shields like the present were a protection from spears. Making shields was one of many types of woodwork necessary in Aboriginal society. In traditional groups all members were craftsmen. Each could fashion the various objects needed for daily use.

The object Fighting shield with the object ID 3038112 was last part of the auction 79th Tribal Art Auction at March 21, 2015 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 61 achieved a sales price of EUR 650.

You can find more Shields and other popular object types on our related topic pages. You may also be interested in our page on Australian art.

Comparing literature

Carrick, John (ed.), Art of the first Australians, Camperdown o.J., p. 15