Glass spearheads, 1930 - 1935
Scope and Contents
A set of seven spearheads of various sizes crafted in the early 1930s by the indigenous people of Kimberley District, Western Australia. They are made from recycled glass bottles and insulators removed from telegraph poles and continue a three thousand year-old tradition of making spearheads. Their distinctive serrated edges were made by ‘pressure flaking’—a technique which involves applying a pointed stick or a shaped piece of animal bone at a very slight oblique angle to the flat of the blade, at evenly spaced points along the edge, and then repeating the process on the other side. Boxed sets of glass spearheads were widely distributed and gifted by missions and government officials in Western Australia.
Dates
- Creation: 1930 - 1935
Conditions Governing Access
Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).
Language of Materials
English
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Presented to the Royal Empire Society by Dr Ernest Black, Government Resident, Broome, Western Australia (1931-1934).
Physical Description
glass
Date information
DateText: The date is approximate..
Finding aid date
2018-02-07 14:20:34+00:00
Repository Details
Part of the Cambridge University Library Repository
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