
Sophie Peckel
Sale Coordinator & Client Liaison
This auction has ended. View lot details



Sold for €25,600 inc. premium
Our African and Oceanic Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialist
Sale Coordinator & Client Liaison

Head of Department

Consultant

Whisk handles of this type were made on Rurutu and Tubuai in the Austral Islands. The lower section, which is now missing, would have been bound with twisted coir. The attachment of pearl shell on some examples known to have been collected in the 18th century has led to the suggestion that they functioned as rattles. Tupaia, the Tahitian priest and navigator, who accompanied Cook to New Zealand on the first voyage, sketched two girls dancing with what appears to be a whisk in each hand. At least one example was collected on Cook's first voyage and on its return to England was sketched by John Frederick Miller.