Bull-Roarer

P1850

From: Australia | South Australia | Central Australia

Curatorial Section: Oceanian

Native Name Churinga
Object Number P1850
Current Location Collections Storage
Provenience Australia | South Australia | Central Australia
Period Late Colonial Australia Period
Date Made 1850-1900 CE
Section Oceanian
Materials Wood | Red Ochre
Description

A wooden bull-roarer covered in red ochre. There is very thin and shallow fluting on both sides. There is a large, carved hole on the left tip of the bull-roarer, and wavy lines etched horizontally across the body which intersect with each other. The back has two main sets of wavy lines which intersect and etched semi-circles along the top and bottom of the bull-roarer.

The collector, J.T. Huston, originally identified this item as a message stick; however, it is confirmed to be a bull-roarer. Huston additionally incorrectly spelled the native name of this object as peeta.

Length 47 cm
Width 8 cm
Credit Line Gift of J. T. Huston, 1907
Other Number 4 - Other Number

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