Masin Pole Club with Cylindrical Basalt Disc Head - Papua New Guinea

Description

Masin Pole Club with Cylindrical Basalt Disc Head, Papua New Guinea
This item is a very old pole club made by the Masin tribe of Papua, New Guinea in the 19th Century. It is from an old collection and it was collected in Collingwood Bay in Oro Province. I had it authenticated at the University of Michigan by an Anthropology professor who spent a lot of time in New Guinea. This pole club has a cylindrical disk head made out of Basalt. It is attached by inserting the pole through the hole at the center of the disk and then the end of the shaft is split and a wedge is inserted in the split to hold the disk in place. The end of the shaft is then bound with tightly braided plant fibre and a cluster of bird-of-paradise feathers is added at the end of the pole. Very clever technology and an incredible old artifact. This is what was used in New Guinea before large quantities of airport art flooded the antique market. The Basalt cylinder has multiple chips in the edge as expected and the feathers o longer hold their bright colors, but this is among the best that you will find in or out of museum collections.
Span = 102 cm ; Weight = 702 gm
.Please, no international shipping. I can combine shipping on multiple lots to save you money. Please let me know when you are done with your purchases and I will send you an invoice with combined shipping costs. If you live near Ann Arbor, you are welcome to pick up your item(s) and eliminate the shipping charges. You will receive a tracking number when I ship your package. The winning bidder agrees to make contact with me within 2 days of the end of the auction and to make payment within 4 days. I will leave feedback after the buyer receives their item and leaves positive feedback for me. Good luck and many thanx for purchasing my eBay items.