Dagger
Place made:Papua New Guinea
Culture: Iatmul
Date: late- 19th-early- 20th century
Medium: Bone
Dimensions:
l. 14 in. (35.6 cm); w. 2 1/2 in. (6.4 cm); d. 2 in. (5.1 cm)
Credit Line: San Antonio Museum of Art, gift of Gilbert M. Denman, Jr.
Object number: 77.1039
Label Text
Each man in the Sepik River Region owns a dagger made of bone, used for fighting, ritual, and prestige display. The material itself represents supernatural power and strength, making these knives valuable. Their shafts are decorated with engraved, incised and sometimes relief carved designs of geometric symbols or birds. Frequently, as with this example, the presence of ancestor figures adds power to the dagger and its owner. Some of these daggers are made from a human femur, but most are fabricated from the tibia of a cassowary, a species of large flightless bird.
On view
In Collection(s)
The San Antonio Museum of Art is in the process of digitizing its permanent collection. This electronic record was created from historic documentation that does not necessarily reflect SAMA's complete or current knowledge about the object. Review and updating of such records is ongoing.
This resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.
