The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 19, 2024

Haft from a Ceremonial Adze

Haft from a Ceremonial Adze

1800s
wood, fiber
Overall: 10.2 cm (4 in.)
Gift of Richard Inglis 1940.1078.a
Location: not on view

Description

Before European contact, Polynesian carving tools were fashioned from bone, shell, stone, or teeth. The introduction of iron tools facilitated carving, while the demand of European sailors and missionaries for souvenirs provided a new market for craft products. Ceremonial adzes probably represented gods or spirits. The wooden handle of this example is carved with the characteristic K motif. The stone adze blade is lashed to the handle with finely plaited sennit fiber cord. According to legend, the distinctive pattern formed by the sennit lashing was taught to Mangaian craftsman by the gods.
  • William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, and Ralph T. Coe. The Imagination of Primitive Man: A Survey of the Arts of the Non-Literate Peoples of the World. Kansas City, Mo: The Museum, 1962. Mentioned: p. 82, no 142; Reproduced: p. 83, no. 142
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 305 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 305 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 417 archive.org
  • {{cite web|title=Haft from a Ceremonial Adze|url=false|author=|year=1800s|access-date=19 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1940.1078.a