Lot 58
SHARK TOOTH SWORD
KIRIBATI
Auction: 28 May 2026 from 13:00 BST
Description
carved palm wood and shark tooth, the teeth set into precisely cut grooves running along each edge of the weapon, then secured with fibre cord
please note that this lot is being offered at no reserve
Dimensions
55.6cm long
Provenance
Michael Hamson, Los Angeles, United States, bearing Hamson inventory number “MHMC-2064”
Private collection, United Kingdom, acquired from the above
Footnote
Made for the inter clan warfare that once shaped the islands of Kiribati, these striking weapons were fitted with rows of shark teeth, fastened to palmwood shafts. They belonged to a broader martial tradition that also produced spears, blades and short stabbing weapons.
To guard against such jagged cutting edges, warriors wore heavy armour woven from coconut fibre. Often bulky but highly effective, it typically comprised a helmet, a cuirass with an extended backplate, together with arm and leg protection designed to resist even these unusually lethal arms.