Sepik region club.

[Tim Simmons]

I have recently recieved this lovely paddle club. It is from the Sepik river region. I would not want to state with certainty which people. I show it next to a Solomon Island club which I for one am more aquainted with. It is just over 53 inches long and although it does not look it, it is 9g heavier than the Solomon Island club. Carved from palmwood. One might at first think it somewhat rough in finish when seen next to a more polish wood club. However I am very interested in simple bold form. I admire the whole decorative form. Not a carved club or forged sword which then has added decoration. Compared with most stuff we see I like the other worldly look about it.

[Indianajones]

Hi Tim, I believe this club is a fightingclub used in the Huon gulf area. They are usually made of palmwood, which is a darkbrown (softer) wood with hard black vines in it. Is yours also of palmwood; it has a nice shiny surface and looks more like ebony.
Both woods are also used by thier neighbours the Massim; ebony ofcourse favored for its hardness (but very hard to cut/availability(?)).
Nice one. Congrats!

[fspic]

The shape of these clubs reminds me of the alternate use of the pointy style new Guinea canoe paddles. My old books indicate a few which are made quite long for the purpose of standing while paddling. I have one or two tucked away somewhere. The change to standing position of canoe occupants thus confused sharks who self-taught themselves to snatch a quick meal from a canoe. After some engineering study the natives decided that standing would be a good disguise and made longer paddles to confuse surprise dinner guests.

On the other hand there is an account of an organized highly scripted cannibal murder of another New Guinea cannibal whose tribe had not been on friendly terms with the other one. As the account noted, the befriended victim was attacked in a hut. Trying to escape through a hole in the floor he was skewered through the leg thus preventing escape. The account said he was beaten to death by the women of the village as he hung through the hole in the floor. The author surmised he expected to get to his canoe at the river at which point he would be use his spear-pointed paddle as a hasty weapon and take an attacker with him.

[David]

Originally Posted by fspic

The change to standing position of canoe occupants thus confused sharks who self-taught themselves to snatch a quick meal from a canoe. After some engineering study the natives decided that standing would be a good disguise and made longer paddles to confuse surprise dinner guests.

This seems a bit unlikely. Sharks as a general rule don't like the taste of humans and when they do attack us it is generally because they mistake us for some of their more usual foods.

[Tim Simmons]

I believe there are paddles for standing up. This is not long enough and you would not get far with the blade width.

[Indianajones]

Dont think the (-se kind of) club is wide enough to make any speed in a canoo!
I have seen many of them, with all a different pattern carved in the middle and they are truly fighting clubs as do their neighbours have the ebony Massim club which are of 'sword' kind of form and have sometimes S-engraving.

[fspic]

Originally Posted by David

This seems a bit unlikely. Sharks as a general rule don't like the taste of humans and when they do attack us it is generally because they mistake us for some of their more usual foods.

That's what the New Guinea book said and for the time being I'll accept the on-scene account. Sharks do poke their heads out of water to be hand fed as shown on some of the Great white specials on South African sharks. There must be some strange motivation to have a line of rowers stand in a log canoe to paddle it. I'll accept the book account. The other problem is crocs. Wooden Boat magazine stated an issue for canoeists around the Mississippi flowing into the Gulf of Mexico is that paddlers face both sharks and crocs or alligators (whichever of the latter two hang out down there).

[David]

Originally Posted by fspic

That's what the New Guinea book said and for the time being I'll accept the on-scene account. Sharks do poke their heads out of water to be hand fed as shown on some of the Great white specials on South African sharks. There must be some strange motivation to have a line of rowers stand in a log canoe to paddle it. I'll accept the book account. The other problem is crocs. Wooden Boat magazine stated an issue for canoeists around the Mississippi flowing into the Gulf of Mexico is that paddlers face both sharks and crocs or alligators (whichever of the latter two hang out down there).

Of course you are welcome to believe anything you choose. All i know is what years of scientific study on the nature and habits of sharks has to say. Perhaps you could give us the actual title of the book and perhaps a few of the actual passages you are citing. That might be helpful.