Main fragment of a sword-trident, "te mangai" (or "te tauman - Lot 99

Lot n° 99
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Estimation :
150 - 250 EUR
Result : NC
Main fragment of a sword-trident, "te mangai" (or "te tauman - Lot 99
Main fragment of a sword-trident, "te mangai" (or "te taumanaria"; sometimes also "te unun"), Kiribati. Circular-section palmwood slat with pointed ends; the lower one is blackened by patina. Above, a light-colored area is visible: this was the junction of the trident's branches, now missing. The wooden slat is decorated with seven black spartan rings running the length of the weapon. Four sets of shark teeth (Prionace glauca, Linn. 1758 or Carcharhinus melanopterus, Quoy & Gaimard 1824), held in each row between two thin wooden rods. Each tooth is pierced to allow the passage of a coir ligature (sennit). Shark tooth weapons from the Tungaru/Kiribati islands are the best-known products from this archipelago. They were used in codified confrontations. The first blood spilled usually signaled the end of the fight. According to G.M. Murdoch, these tridents were used by the main fighter's assistants to attack their opposite numbers in hand-to-hand combat. Wounds caused by these weapons were extremely painful and left large scars, which were displayed as a mark of courage. Tungaru population, Tungaru/Kiribati Islands (formerly Gilbert Islands), Republic of Kiribati. Missing and worn. On base. Dimension : 101x3cm ; weight : 230 grs. Estimated dating: Late 19th - early 20th century Provenance : ex Luxembourg private collection Selective bibliography : - C.M. Geary (ed.), From the South Seas. Oceanic Art in the Teel collection, Boston, Museum of Fine Arts, 2006; p. 134, fig. 72. - I. Heerman (ed.), Südsee Oasen. Leben und überleben im Westpazifik, Stuttgart, Linden Museum, 2009; p.224, Abb. 248. - G. Koch, "Les cuirasses et la ritualisation de la guerre aux îles Kiribati", in A. Notter (ed.), Océanie, la découverte du paradis, Paris, Somogy, 1997; pp. 202-206. - G. M. Murdoch "Gilbert Islands Weapons and armour", Journal of the Polynesian Society, September 1923, Vol. 32, No. 3(127), pp. 174-175 - B. Treide, In den Weiten des Pazifik Mikronesien, Wiesdaben, Dr Ludwig Reichert Verlag, 1997; p. 25, fig. 53. - Webography: https://oceanicart.com/ESSAYS/Micronesian-Shark-Tooth-Weapons/1 Corpus for reconciliation: -Musée du Quai Branly - Jacques Chirac (Paris): 71.1932.35.96 Oc D - British Museum (London) : Oc.1961 - Denver Art museum (Denvers, USA): 1949.4297 - Lot 41, sale on November 11, 2023, Zemanek-Münster (Germany) Height: 101 cm Width: 3 cm Weight: 230 grs
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