Property of various owners
A superb incised war club, apa’apai
Tonga, the swollen lenticular head of lozenge section, the entire surface carved into segments incorporating typical zigzag and herringbone bands, in addition to one panel with a pair of warriors holding clubs aloft, another with a pairs of frigate birds and crescent moons, and a third panel with a circular motif depicting a vagina.
length 45 ½in
length 45 ½in
Estimate:
US$ 15,000 - 20,000
£9,900 - 13,000
€12,000 - 16,000
£9,900 - 13,000
€12,000 - 16,000
Footnotes
- This fully carved and early Tongan club not only boasts such desirable features as anthropomorphic figures and zoomorphs, but it is probably one of the only examples depicting female sexual organs. One may speculate that this may be due in part to early Tongan beliefs linking warfare and sacrifice to regeneration.
Category: Ethnographic Art / Tribal
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