Oceania, Papua New Guinea, ca. late 19th to early 20th century CE. An elegant adze blade of rectangular form, hand-whetted from dark grey basalt. The fascinating implement tapers to a sharp edge on one side and is slightly slanted at the other, which has a blunt end. Adze heads like this example are typically wrapped with vegetal reeds and attached to a hand-carved wooden handle. Adzes are traditionally given as gifts and are widely used throughout Papua New Guinea for all manner of crafting and carving projects, such as dugout canoes and wooden sculptures. Size: 6.2" L x 1.7" W (15.7 cm x 4.3 cm)
This piece was sold by Sotheby's London in "The Charter House Collection" auction on November 5th, 2002 as part of a group of 6 New Guinea stone adze blades listed as lot 1.
Provenance: private Newport Beach, California, USA Collection; ex-Sotheby's, London "The Charter House Collection" auction (November 5, 2002, part of lot 1); ex-Reverend Lord Charles Harvey collection
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#161894
Condition
"12-1957" inscribed on one side. Some nicks and chips, commensurate with age and use. Otherwise, excellent.