The U'u is a war

club Club may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Club'' (magazine) * Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character * Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards * Club music * "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea'' Brands and enterprises ...

of the

Marquesas Islands The Marquesas Islands (; french: Îles Marquises or ' or '; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in th ...

Uses in Marquesas

Cut from

iron wood Ironwood is a common name for many woods or plants that have a reputation for hardness, or specifically a wood density that is heavier than water (approximately 1000 kg/m3, or 62 pounds per cubic foot), although usage of the name ironwood in E ...

, its shape and large size distinguishes it from other Pacific gunstocks. It was reserved for a caste of warriors who were assisting allied tribes. The club should at least reach its possessor's armpits. The striking head, although apparently identical, was richly carved, and it is an artistic work with drawings representing lizards, human figures, or

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several Process of tatt ...

patterns. U'u’s were left in a

taro Taro () (''Colocasia esculenta)'' is a root vegetable. It is the most widely cultivated species of several plants in the family Araceae that are used as vegetables for their corms, leaves, and petioles. Taro corms are a food staple in Africa ...

field, where they turned black, then coated with coconut oil.Anthony JP Meyer, ''Art océanien'', Könemann, 1995, p. 506

Gallery

File:Eastern Pacific lands; Tahiti and the Marquesas islands (1910) (14591559368).jpg, U'u's striking head. File:War club, Marquesas Islands, 19th century.JPG, U'u war club, National Museum of Scotland,

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

. File:Mouina, Chief warrior of the Tayehs Wellcome L0040399.jpg, Tribe chief with a U'u. File:Nuku Hiva Warrior1.jpg,

Nuku Hiva Nuku Hiva (sometimes spelled Nukahiva or Nukuhiva) is the largest of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas country of France in the Pacific Ocean. It was formerly also known as ''Île Marchand'' and ''Madison Island''. Herman M ...

warrior with tattoo and his U'u. File:U'u, Akau Too - Marquesas.jpg, U'u

References

Bibliography

* John Charles Edler, Terence Barrow, ''Art of Polynesia'', Hemmeter Publishing Corporation, 1990. * Anthony JP Meyer, ''Art océanien'', Könemann, 1995. Clubs (weapon) Primitive weapons Ritual weapons {{Blunt-weapon-stub