Stone Adze, "Puna" (USNM E178579)

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Collector:

Henry Adams

Notes:

FROM CARD: "FIGURED, P. 24, AS A STONE FETISH MADE IN THE SHAPE OF A LARGE ADZE, IN ARTS OF THE SOUTH SEAS, BY RALPH LINTON AND PAUL S. WINGERT, THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART. N.Y. 1946. (SEE LEGEND IN PHILLIPS' PAPERS. H.D. SKINNER CALLS THIS A "COOKED UP" STORY TOLD TO PHILLIPS. LINTON BELIEVES IT AND REFERS TO THE OBJECT AS A STONE FETISH. SKINNER IS CERTAIN THAT IT IS FROM EASTER ISLAND AND THAT IT HAD BEEN USED IN MAKING THE LARGE STONE STATUES THERE. BIG OBJECTS REQUIRE BIG TOOLS IN THE MAKING. 9/10/53 DR. GILBERT CORWIN, US. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, IDENTIFIES THE MATERIAL FROM WHICH THIS IS MADE AS: "FINE-GRAINED HEAVY BASALT", OF A TYPE WHICH OCCURS ON ALL OF THE ISLANDS IN QUESTION: TAHITI, NEW ZEALAND, & EASTER, AND THEREFORE, FROM THIS ASPECT, COULD NOT BE LOCALIZED, IT AT ALL, WITHOUT THIN-SECTIONING FOR AN ANALYSIS OF THE INCLUDED MINERALS. IT CAN NOT BE TESTED OTHERWISE. APPARENTLY EMORY DID NOT DISCUSS IT WHILE AT THE MUSEUM, BUT SKINNER CLAIMS THAT HE THINKS THAT IT IS FROM EASTER I. ???? THE POSSIBILITY THAT IT CAME FROM EITHER OF THE ISLANDS SUGGESTED, OTHER THAN TAHITI, SEEMS HIGHLY UNLIKELY WITHOUT VERY STRONG REASONS FOR IT HAVING BEEN TRANSPORTED. --R. ELDER, JR. 5/19/58. LETTER OF MAY 7, 1959, FROM UNIVERSIDAD DE CHILE, CENTRO DE ESTUDIAS ANTROPOLOGICOS, CALLE EJERCITO 233, SANTIAGO, CHILE (SIGNED GONZALO FIGUEROA AND EDUARDO SANCHEZ R.): "WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED BY DR. ROGER DUFF OF THE CANTERBURY MUSEUM (NEW ZEALAND) .... THAT THIS SPECIMEN IS OF UNDOUBTEDLY EASTER ISLAND ORIGIN." WITH THIS I AGREE. - S.H. RIESENBERG. EMORY (1946) ALSO SAYS EASTER ISLAND."

This object was originally identified as collected in Tahiti, but later identified (see above) as possibly from Easter Island. Dr. Adrienne Kaeppler has identified this object as of Maori, New Zealand origin. See Kaeppler, Adrienne L. 1996. The Great Stone Adze in the Smithsonian Institution: History and Provenance. Rapa Nui Journal, 10(4): 89-92. In this paper she outlines her view that ".. it was made and used by the New Zealand Maori. Later it was traded and transported to Tahiti, perhaps via an early European voyage. It was acquired and used as a "fish god" by a Tahitian and finally given to Henry Adams. ... In any case, it can no longer be considered an Easter Island piece, and its temporary adoption as such can only be attributed to the guesswork of our anthropological ancestors."

Object on display in National Museum of Natural History exhibit "Objects of Wonder", 2017 - 2024. Exhibit label: Adze with spiral relief, Polynesian, probably Maori, New Zealand, pre-18th century; Basalt. The New Zealand Maori used a variety of spirals, known as koru, in their art and material culture. The motif, seen here on a woodworking tool called an adze, may derive from the silver fern's young shoots.

See also Kaeppler, Adrienne. 2001. "A Photograph is Worth A Thousand Words" in Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on Easter Island and the Pacific. Christopher M. Stevenson, et. al, eds.

Record Last Modified:

21 Apr 2025

Specimen Count:

1

Accession Number:

032873

USNM Number:

E178579-0

Place:

Tahiti (collected here) / New Zealand (Aotearoa) (not certain), Polynesia

See more items in:

Anthropology

NMNH - Anthropology Dept.

Record ID:

nmnhanthropology_8352715

GUID (Link to Original Record):

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/312d0b7a4-5818-4dae-a104-2c8da78b2a52