Santa Cruz Islands, Temotu Province, Solomon Islands
19th century
Wood
Height 72 in (182.9 cm)
Provenance: Marie Ange Ciolkowska, Paris, purchased prior to 1960
Paddles from the Santa Cruz Islands are among the more visually distinctive forms produced in the southwestern Pacific. Their elongated lanceolate blades provided a broad surface for carved and incised decoration, giving the object a role beyond ordinary use. Examples of this type could circulate in ceremonial and prestige contexts as well as in relation to canoe travel and maritime life.
The blade tapers to a point at both ends, with the shaft rising from the upper blade in a continuous line. Incised imagery across the face of the blade reflects Santa Cruz decorative traditions and gives the surface its visual structure. The wood carries a patina consistent with age and handling, while the Paris provenance places the paddle within a mid-twentieth-century European collecting context for Pacific material.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
Santa Cruz Islands, Temotu Province, Solomon Islands
19th century
Wood
Height 72 in (182.9 cm)
Provenance: Marie Ange Ciolkowska, Paris, purchased prior to 1960
Paddles from the Santa Cruz Islands are among the more visually distinctive forms produced in the southwestern Pacific. Their elongated lanceolate blades provided a broad surface for carved and incised decoration, giving the object a role beyond ordinary use. Examples of this type could circulate in ceremonial and prestige contexts as well as in relation to canoe travel and maritime life.
The blade tapers to a point at both ends, with the shaft rising from the upper blade in a continuous line. Incised imagery across the face of the blade reflects Santa Cruz decorative traditions and gives the surface its visual structure. The wood carries a patina consistent with age and handling, while the Paris provenance places the paddle within a mid-twentieth-century European collecting context for Pacific material.
We ship free anywhere in the world, fully insured, packed by hand.
