Interesting Aus club

Tim Simmons · 14th July 2014, 07:06 PM

This is my latest acquisition. It is a heavy root ball club carved with a very nice weight forward curve. Interesting grip and decorative carved design forming a collar near the ball end. The lizard motif clearly has saw blade marks on the head. It does not have a deep or glossy patina and the wood appears to have been stained by some substance. That does not always mean recent manufacture . It does seem to have some age. You can see some letters and 04 in yellow paint. Is this a collection number? could 04 be 1904? There was still frontier conflict with Aborigines well into the 20th century. Not all old Australian Aborigine weapon are plain many display decorative carving and animal motifs. I find the depiction of the lizards hind legs interesting quite different to the fore legs?

Links
http://www.nma.gov.au/collections/hi...cts-collection

Frontier wars.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_frontier_wars

One of the last conflict incidents.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coniston_massacre

ausjulius · 22nd July 2014, 04:28 PM

hi nice root ball, it does appear to be rather old..
and it is true tribal warefare and also fighting between stockmen and tribal black fellows was still taking blade in the 30s and 40s in the top end and isolated areas of Qld..
when i lived in darwin there was urban legends of punitive actions in ww2 by australian soliders against tribes in the top end who had assisted the japanese... wheather true or not that would be the last case of such activities..

i believe however the carving is the handy work of a european not of a native aborigine.
not at all their style, north queenslad had the most irregular carving colouring and such and they dont/didnt produce anything like this
i woudl say this is most defiantly a genuine antique rootball aboriginal club but the carving has been applied far in the past but a non aboriginal person based on what the presumed the aboriginal carving would look like for their own plesure, i have seen such kind of work on boomerangs before typically pocket knife carvings. a kangaroo. snakes ect. done like a westerner would carve if they were to attempt to replicate an animal on wood for the first time.

VANDOO · 23rd July 2014, 01:26 PM

A NICE CLUB

IT DOES SHOW INFLUENCE FROM OUTSIDE THE OLD TRADITIONAL ABORIGINAL DESIGN BUT ALSO INCORPORATES SOME OF THE OLD ABORIGINAL DESIGNS. VARIOUS RELIGIONS SET UP MISSIONS IN THE PAST TO PROTECT AND EDUCATE THE NATIVE AUSTRALIAN TRIBES AND THEY OFTEN ENCOURAGED NATIVE ART BUT DID CAUSE NON- TRADITIONAL MODIFICATIONS.
THEY WOULD LIKELY SAY DO IT LIKE THIS IT IS EASY AND LOOKS BETTER. THERE ARE SOME NATIVE MADE ARTIFACTS COLLECTED AND NAMED AFTER SPECIFIC MISSIONS IN CARVING AS WELL AS PAINTING STYLES. SO YOUR CLUB MAY OR MAY NOT FALL INTO ONE OF THE MISSION STYLES.

Tim Simmons · 23rd July 2014, 05:25 PM

I have to agree with Barry. I do not see the motifs as European. the mission station would have a massive impact. As one of the links shows European influence would be hard to avoid completely in the late 19th or early 20th century.

14th July 2014, 07:06 PM	#1
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,739	Interesting Aus club This is my latest acquisition. It is a heavy root ball club carved with a very nice weight forward curve. Interesting grip and decorative carved design forming a collar near the ball end. The lizard motif clearly has saw blade marks on the head. It does not have a deep or glossy patina and the wood appears to have been stained by some substance. That does not always mean recent manufacture . It does seem to have some age. You can see some letters and 04 in yellow paint. Is this a collection number? could 04 be 1904? There was still frontier conflict with Aborigines well into the 20th century. Not all old Australian Aborigine weapon are plain many display decorative carving and animal motifs. I find the depiction of the lizards hind legs interesting quite different to the fore legs? Links http://www.nma.gov.au/collections/hi...cts-collection Frontier wars. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_frontier_wars One of the last conflict incidents. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coniston_massacre Attached Images Last edited by Tim Simmons; 14th July 2014 at 07:19 PM.

22nd July 2014, 04:28 PM	#2
ausjulius Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: musorian territory Posts: 415	hi nice root ball, it does appear to be rather old.. and it is true tribal warefare and also fighting between stockmen and tribal black fellows was still taking blade in the 30s and 40s in the top end and isolated areas of Qld.. when i lived in darwin there was urban legends of punitive actions in ww2 by australian soliders against tribes in the top end who had assisted the japanese... wheather true or not that would be the last case of such activities.. i believe however the carving is the handy work of a european not of a native aborigine. not at all their style, north queenslad had the most irregular carving colouring and such and they dont/didnt produce anything like this i woudl say this is most defiantly a genuine antique rootball aboriginal club but the carving has been applied far in the past but a non aboriginal person based on what the presumed the aboriginal carving would look like for their own plesure, i have seen such kind of work on boomerangs before typically pocket knife carvings. a kangaroo. snakes ect. done like a westerner would carve if they were to attempt to replicate an animal on wood for the first time.

23rd July 2014, 01:26 PM	#3
VANDOO (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: OKLAHOMA, USA Posts: 3,138	A NICE CLUB IT DOES SHOW INFLUENCE FROM OUTSIDE THE OLD TRADITIONAL ABORIGINAL DESIGN BUT ALSO INCORPORATES SOME OF THE OLD ABORIGINAL DESIGNS. VARIOUS RELIGIONS SET UP MISSIONS IN THE PAST TO PROTECT AND EDUCATE THE NATIVE AUSTRALIAN TRIBES AND THEY OFTEN ENCOURAGED NATIVE ART BUT DID CAUSE NON- TRADITIONAL MODIFICATIONS. THEY WOULD LIKELY SAY DO IT LIKE THIS IT IS EASY AND LOOKS BETTER. THERE ARE SOME NATIVE MADE ARTIFACTS COLLECTED AND NAMED AFTER SPECIFIC MISSIONS IN CARVING AS WELL AS PAINTING STYLES. SO YOUR CLUB MAY OR MAY NOT FALL INTO ONE OF THE MISSION STYLES.

23rd July 2014, 05:25 PM	#4
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,739	I have to agree with Barry. I do not see the motifs as European. the mission station would have a massive impact. As one of the links shows European influence would be hard to avoid completely in the late 19th or early 20th century.