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Description: | This shield was given to the Museum by Emslie Horniman, Frederick Horniman’s son, in 1913. It comes from the Trobriand Islands, an archipelago east of Papua New Guinea in the Solomon Sea.
Only the greatest warriors in Trobriand society had decorated shields. The painted design on the shield advertised the social status and bravery of its owner. Each district had a war magician, who would charm a shield with incantations. Ordinary shields were either painted black or white. Painting a shield was a challenge to the enemy and splitting the shield or killing the owner was considered a great honour. The Trobrianders made their shields from acacia wood with the designs painted in black, white and red. The shields are thick, but could still split from a spear attack. The shield would cover a man’s body, leaving his legs exposed. One of the important accomplishments of a successful fighter was the ability to jump to protect his legs.
By the time anthropologists began studying the Trobriand Islands, the colonial government had eliminated warfare among the inhabitants. The shields were no longer being made or used. Throughout the twentieth century, anthropologists have suggested theories on the design. Trobriand shields all use an abstract design of a human body. One interpretation is that it represents a man and woman in intercourse, insulting the enemy. Another theory suggests this is a flying witch from Trobriand mythology, intended to frighten the enemy. Explanations of shield designs remain hypothetical, as these objects are no longer made and were poorly documented in the past.
War Shield, Vayola, Trobriand Islands, Massim, Papua New Guinea.
Warfare in the Trobriand Islands was pursued with long throwing spears, wooden sword-clubs, and shields such as these. In the pre-Christian period, before a battle, the village magician would cast a spell over each shield to make them invulnerable to spears. He did this by reciting a magical formula over its painted surface from centimetres away, so that his breath would flow across the shield’s surface. Trobriand’s war shields are always painted in a very similar way, but no two designs are exactly the same, and there is little agreement about what these designs ‘mean’.
Some interpreters have viewed vayola as showing flying witches (mulukwausi), the most terrifying spirits in traditional Trobriand’s mythology. Others have viewed them as depictions of sexual intercourse, a gross insult to the enemy. Others view the three major ‘zones’ of the shield’s decoration as representing the head, throat and abdomen of a human figure; for the Trobriand Islanders, magical power was stored in the belly, and the design may represent magical power coming out into the world.
Wood, cane, pigment. Late 19th century. Formerly in the private collection of Mr James Edge Partington.
Painted war shield, vayola.
These vayola war shields were rendered magically impervious to spears and clubs prior to battle by the village sorceror breathing incantations into their painted surface. This surface comprises several different elements, including representations of masculine and warlike animals such as hornbill, snake and fish, and brilliant phenomena such as morning stars and rainbows. Some people have interpreted the surface of these shields as representing terrifying flying witch spirits named mulukuausi, while others have seen them as insulting depictions of sexual intercourse; clearly the aim was to dazzle, terrify and revile the enemy. | Publisher: | http://www.horniman.ac.uk/ | Subjects: | mineral pigment Acacia wood shields (weapons: accessories) War- and Peace-making | Source: | Horniman Museum | Identifier: | oai:oai.horniman.ac.uk:object-5150 |
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