Figure

18194A

From: Fiji Islands | Tonga Islands

Curatorial Section: Oceanian

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Object Number 18194A
Current Location Collections Storage
Culture Fijian | Tongan
Provenience Fiji Islands | Tonga Islands
Date Made Before 1875
Section Oceanian
Materials Whale Ivory | Metal
Technique Carved
Description

Figure carved from sperm whale tooth. Holes in back of head may have been drilled for suspension. Left shoulder and arm broken off and mended with iron pins. Collected in Fiji but possibly made in Tonga. One of a handful of small whale ivory figures collected in Fiji and Tonga during the second half of the 19th century. Little is known about the function and significance of these figures: they seem to have been objects of reverence, but not worship.

Height 15 cm
Width 5.5 cm
Credit Line Gift of William Pepper, 1891
Other Number LE706 - Other Number

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