Catalogue LS-223
Mentawai
- Region
- Siberut, Mentawai Islands, Indonesia
- Culture
- Mentawai
- Object type
- Household item
Materials
Wood, Rattan
Size
Not recorded
Description
Oar. Flat wooden plank attached with rattan to the main wooden mast. (see similar at https://www.dorotheum.com/en/l/1105975/ Only the inhabitants of the Mentawai Islands know how to make boat paddles using this technique (the Mentawai Islands include the Islands of Siberut, Sipora etc.) to the southwest of Sumatra. Flat, broad, pointed ovals made of wood form paddle shovels that are pierced twice along their central axis and affixed crosswise with rattan strips to long paddle shafts that are carved at the top.