Melanesian Artefacts:

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District or Village: The Sepik River region of Papua New Guinea.

Description: This piece is a traditional stone work adze consisting of a flat-sided blade of polished stone mounted in a split socket. This socket is lashed onto the wooden haft at an angle of about sixty degrees with rattan strands. The haft is slightly curved with a knob carved at the end.

The blade is well polished with use. The rattan binding have a patina of varying shades of brown which probably indicates a number of re-lashings with change of blade. The haft has a dark brown patina which is worn and polished through use.

Provenance: Date and place of collection is unknown. Acquired by LukLuk Gallery in 1992 from a tribal art gallery in Melbourne.

Old Catalogue No.: #9201-59; SPK112; ML0172.

Reference:

Sillitoe, Paul. Made in Niugini - Technology in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea. British Museum Publications, London, 1988.