Lot 5

POLE CLUB, BOVAI
TONGA




Auction: 26 November 2025 at 14:00 GMT
Description
carved wood, of bold, linear form, decorated with geometric carvings evoking the wrapping of a textile, raised on a bespoke mount
Dimensions
103.9cm long
Footnote
While the symbolic significance of the layout and motifs on Tongan clubs remains unclear, it likely relates to tattoo and bark-cloth patterns, which served as metaphors for chiefly qualities.
Literature: Polynesia: The Mark and Carolyn Blackburn Collection of Polynesia Art, Adrian L. Kaeppler, University of Hawai'i Press, Honolulu, 2010, related example, fig. 186, page 257.



