Any Amazon collectors?

[Tim Simmons]

I just thought I ought to add this comparison of iconography to what is clearly recognized as Amazonian.

[Tim Simmons]

Finally ready to show this. I know there is limited interest in this sort of thing. Just think about it? yes its not hundreds of years old but it is far from common and I have been informed of its rarity due to evangelism, let alone the small size of population. Poor versions are made for sale. A great deal of the "antique" weapons we collect are very common made in there millions but still seem to be rather expensive.
I have restored the missing tusks, thank you "weapons27" as the tusks were all damaged. Only one of the original tusks was usable after some super glue.

[T. Koch]

Wow, never seen peccary teeth used for anything before! How is the internal structure of the tooth - very much like that of a pig's, I imagine?

Mounted on the club, one can't tell the difference. You've done a good job of replacing them!

Thanks for putting it up Tim. This thread is really interesting, and I'm always excited to see you update with new stuff.


All the best, - Thor

[Tim Simmons]

I had concerns about Peccary v Feral Pig tusks. I do not know if the originals were one or the other. I have put my mind at rest as Feral Pigs have been in South America since the 16th century.

[KuKulzA28]

Originally Posted by Tim Simmons

Finally ready to show this. I know there is limited interest in this sort of thing.

Don't worry, I'm sure there are those who are intrigued but unable to add much input. It was the same for Taiwanese aborignal knives - it's just not a collector's hot-spot so-to-speak. Nihonto, keris, Moro & Filipino, and Indo-Persian stuff is a whole 'nother story...
I for one am fascinated, but I don't have any authentic vintage/antique clubs or some immense wealth of knowledge ...I just have an old 70+ yr old set of apinaje bow and arrows, and it's Amazonian archery that I have more knowledge on.

More recently collected or not, this club is an example of their material culture, and even if it is a ceremonial-oriented object, or a warclub design no longer (if ever) used in war, it sheds light on what is, what was, and what may have been...

I did find this flat convex edged paddle-like club here at American Museum of Natural History: http://anthro.amnh.org/south

They are attributed to the Wayana - you probably knew already.


What interests me somewhat is that it resembles one of the paddle-club shapes that Walter Roth describes. Essentially Don Arp, Jr. breaks down Guianan clubs as "block", "spatulate", "paddle", and "dagger"... he is mainly drawing upon Walter Roth's work I think.
I am getting my information from here: http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/vi...lock%20Club%22
That article has been posted on the Ethno. Arms & Armor forum before, in the macana/aputu thread.

Check page 15, the generalized shapes for the "paddle clubs" have one incomplete sketch on the right that resembles these Wayana clubs... Where-as the left-most I have seen attributed to Kali'na/Caribe and Makushi... and the centeral one I have seen in depictions of Arawaks/Lokonos.


These clubs, having two bulges and a spike remind me of an arawak club:
http://www.americanindian.si.edu/sea...size=75&page=1
which looks relatively similar to the central sketch of paddle clubs in the Aputu article I linked to earlier...

[Iain]

Originally Posted by Tim Simmons

Finally ready to show this. I know there is limited interest in this sort of thing. Just think about it? yes its not hundreds of years old but it is far from common and I have been informed of its rarity due to evangelism, let alone the small size of population. Poor versions are made for sale. A great deal of the "antique" weapons we collect are very common made in there millions but still seem to be rather expensive.
I have restored the missing tusks, thank you "weapons27" as the tusks were all damaged. Only one of the original tusks was usable after some super glue.

Very nice restoration. I'm certainly interested in this sort of thing - I just have so little knowledge its hard to know what to say. I will say thank you, because threads like these end up providing more info than the rest of the Internet, particularly because the items in question are actually shown and not just written about.

[Tim Simmons]

Found this picture of the necklace of a Colombian Amazon Indian chief. The tusks have all been trimmed to some degree as I have had to to get the tusks to fit in the holes on the club which is really a cult item rather than a weapon. If you really needed to hit somebody, it would hurt. I am quite happy with the restoration.

[Tim Simmons]

I was emailed these two pictures of thr sort of made for sale versions that are found these days.

[Tim Simmons]

Yabahana, Rio Apaporis, E Colombia. Tusks.

[Tim Simmons]

The Brazil/south American section of my collection keeps growing with the addition of this splendid Ikpeng club. The first contact with the Ikpeng was 1960 so one cannot expect antique examples. There are signs of metal tools file? marks. Carved from a heavy dark palm wood 1.7kg. The current Ikpeng population is around 500 souls up from a post contact disease low of 50. I can only imagine that they are not the most common form of Amazon Indian club like those of the Kayapo and Karaja. This little educational film taken from youtube is pleasant to watch {as is the second part}. 3.08 minutes in two young boys pull clubs from the thatch and laughingly demonstrate there use.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xafm2Edcgq8

The club has an unusual hollow carved into one side of the blade and small ridge at the very distal end on the other side. It is very comfortable in the hand. I also show it in a group of South Seas clubs. All except the Micronesian example next to the Ikpeng, are very common indeed yet command at the very least 3 times the money in the "market". They are all lighter in weight the new club is 104cm long.