A Fine and Rare Spear Thrower, Port Essington, Northern Territory

Cf. H. Basedow, "Anthropological Notes on the Coastal Tribes of the Northern Territory", Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia, 1907, vol. 31, pp. 1-62, pls. 1-19; and S. Davies, collects ed: 150 Years of Aboriginal Art and Artifacts at the Macleay Museum, Sydney, 2002, p. 22, pl. 10, for examples of a similar quality collects ed before 1878.

"Aboriginal people in the Port Essington area used this type of spearthrower which was made from an extremely light wood and is said to have been used only by experienced men [...] [the] extremely fine incised decoration present on the handle [...] extends on to the shaft. Basedow (1907) reported that this type of decoration (consisting of rows of small holes) was applied with a fishbone, or small stick" (ibid.).