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Superb "Coconut Leaf-Stalk" Club, Tonga Islands image 1
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PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT AMERICAN COLLECTION
Lot 19

Superb "Coconut Leaf-Stalk" Club, Tonga Islands

21 November – 5 December 2024, 12:00 PST
Online, Los Angeles

Sold for US$25,000 inc. premium

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Superb "Coconut Leaf-Stalk" Club, Tonga Islands

apa'apai
Wood
Height 41 3/4in (106cm)

Provenance
James T. Hooper Collection, London/Arundel
Linda Ridgeway Cunningham Collection, New York
Sotheby's, New York, 15 May 2017, Lot 46
Private Collection, United States

Literature
Phelps, Steven, Art and Artefacts of the Pacific, Africa and the Americas: The James Hooper Collection, London, 1976, p. 171, pl. 93, no. 720

Finely carved in hardwood, the upper portion in flaring, trapezoidal form with slight medial ridge dividing the surface on each side; the shaft below the horizontal rib with superbly incised zigzag and linear tata decoration, it then slightly flares out at the butt mirroring the wide spread of the head; shiny dark brown patina with reddish undertones; inscribed on the bottom of the club in white ink with Hooper collection number 'H. 720.'

Often referred to as a coconut leaf-stalk club due to the shape, the refined and pure form of this particular example must have been deceptively difficult to achieve for the artist, undoubtedly a master carver. The wear and old losses to the collar and head are indicative of its age and traditional use as a weapon.

Additional information

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