Marquesan. Cord Handle, 18th or 19th century. Bone, seeds, coir, 23 1/4 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 in. (59.1 x 3.8 x 3.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 38.638. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 38.638_SL1.jpg)
Marquesan. Cord Handle, 18th or 19th century. Bone, seeds, coir, 23 1/4 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 in. (59.1 x 3.8 x 3.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 38.638. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.38.638_print_front1_bw.jpg)
Marquesan. Cord Handle, 18th or 19th century. Bone, seeds, coir, 23 1/4 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 in. (59.1 x 3.8 x 3.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 38.638. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 38.638_acetate_bw.jpg)
Marquesan. Cord Handle, 18th or 19th century. Bone, seeds, coir, 23 1/4 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/4 in. (59.1 x 3.8 x 3.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Dick S. Ramsay Fund, 38.638. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, CUR.38.638_print_front2_bw.jpg)
Cord Handle
Arts of the Pacific Islands
This decorated cord handle from a coconut shell or gourd container features carved bone toggles depicting important ancestors or deities. These toggles exhibit some of the defining characteristics of Marquesan figurative sculpture, including large, rounded eyes, a wide nose, a broad, thin mouth with a slightly protruding tongue, double scroll ears, and hands placed on a swelling belly.
