Shark-tooth sword ·  Kiribati - Gilbert Islands · ID: 3041914

Description

coconut wood, fine woven twine from coconut fibre (“te koro”), leaf fibre, four-part, shark teeth attached evenly around the shaft, bound between thin wooden rods arranged in pairs, some teeth dam., resp. missing, base;
these swords were also used as part of “ceremonial warfare” performances, the maintenance of honour and the settling of disputes in ritual duelling. It wasn’t just the sword that was used in these contexts however, as they only formed a small part of a warrior’s combat ensemble. Along with a sword and/or dagger, a warrior wore a complete set of armour, made from thickly woven coconut fibre and a belt of stingray skin, and a helmet created from a hollowed out and dried puffer fish.

The object Shark-tooth sword with the object ID 3041914 was last part of the auction 85th Tribal Art Auction at March 4, 2017 on Zemanek-Münster Auction house. The object with the lot number 51 achieved a sales price of EUR 2,000.

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