club, ball-headed

club, ball-headed

club, ball-headed

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Introduction

Anishinaabe wooden club with animal being with open mouth holding a pointed ball-head. Elaborately carved and painted and dyed on both sides. Made between 1800-1850. Purchased through the Venduehuis der Notarissen auction house in The Hague in 1898.

Nation of Maker: Anishinaabe
Nation of Origin

Museum documentation

Date Made or Date Range: 1800-1850
Summary of Source(s) for this Relative

GRASAC generated

Materials

wood; paint/dye

Techniques or Format

Appears to be carved from a single piece of wood. Shaft is flat, with rounded contour at the handle end, and the head of an animal with an open mouth holding the ball-head. The ball-head end is conical in shape, with sawtooth contour around the centre, and end carved into a point and painted with red paint/dye. Both sides of the club are decorated with different elaborate engravings and paint/dye.

Motifs and Patterns

Animal head has open mouth that is painted red, teeth, and eyes. Both sides of the shaft engraved with geometric and lobed motifs, some possible references to four-quadrants(?)

Other Notes

Possibly a metal inset in the pointed ball tip(?)

Dimensions: 68 × 22.5 × 0 cm
Reasons for connecting this relative with particular times, materials, styles and uses

Museum documentation

Current Location: Museum Volkenkunde, Leiden, Netherlands
Catalogue, Accession or Reference Number: 1200-17
Date of Acquisition by the Institution: 1898
Who the Institution Acquired the Relative or Heritage Item From: Venduehuis der Notarissen
Collection Narratives and Histories

Purchased from Venduehuis der Notarissen in 1898 (oldest auction house in the Netherlands, in The Hague)

Comment on Source of Exhibition & Publication Data

Museum documentation

Sources to Learn More

N. Feder. "American Indian Art," pg 392, image 213

GKS Reference Number: 27119
Approximate Place of Origin

45.7335, -82.1694

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