Indentured labor from Vanuatu and other southern Pacific islands was a common practice in 19th C Australia, especially in Queensland. Workers would sometimes come seasonally and then return home, others would stay year round. The presence of boomerangs in Vanuatu likely resulted from those who came to Australia to work and then returned to Vanuatu. Northern Australian indigenous groups did trade with seafaring islanders, and it is possible that such trade may have accounted for finding boomerangs in Vanuatu. However, I have recently been looking into the weapons of Vanuatu and can find no mention of boomerangs recorded there by early European visitors.
The examples shown in the picture do not resemble Australian boomerangs very closely, particularly the squared ends, and they do not appear to be carved for good aerodynamic performance. Returning boomerangs have one side flat, the other slightly convex, and the edges are thin. When thrown right-handed, a returning boomerang will soar as well as fly in a circle anti-clockwise. In the hand, it is held with the flat side down and the concave edge forward, and launched overhand at about a 45º angle to get optimum flight.
The examples shown by ausjulius are also called throwing sticks.
Last edited by Ian; 3rd March 2026 at 02:33 PM.
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