Lot n° 238
Estimation :
8500 - 9500
EUR
HOE" CEREMONIAL OAR. Maori. New Zealand. Presumed to be from - Lot 238
HOE" CEREMONIAL OAR. Maori. New Zealand. Presumed to be from 1870. Wood, haliotis shell. Former private collection, Sweden. This beautiful Maori ceremonial oar was not used to drive the dugout canoes but as an emblem of prestige and belonging that allowed one to speak or to accompany the dances by simulating the arrival of the oarsmen from the original ancestral voyage. It is carved with a series of two superimposed Tiki, the main Maori deity. A stylized bird's head serves as a pommel. The sculpture is nervous, deep and refined, very characteristic of the aesthetic style of the mid-19th century. On its back are engraved swirling motifs, certainly symbolizing the meandering of the sea.
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