A kanta shield for restauration

Sajen · 24th May 2015, 10:22 AM

I never would have the money to buy a kanta shield from Sulawesi in good condition which will cost some thousand $$ since this shields are very rare. By searching through ebay I found some days ago such a shield wrong labeled and in a category where I normally don't search. The shield is in a sad condition but restorable, see pictures from the seller. Most of the hair and nearly all bone plate inlays are missing. The inlays by this shields are from bone and not from MOP. The small shells are nassa shells. The shield is 44" (112 cm) long and 5 1/4" (13 cm) broad.
All comments are very welcome.

Sajen · 24th May 2015, 10:24 AM

Here a picture of such a shield in much better condition. I hope that my one will look once similar.

BANDOOK · 24th May 2015, 10:36 AM

GOOD BUYING,ALL THE BEST FOR THE RESTORATION

Sajen · 24th May 2015, 11:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BANDOOK

GOOD BUYING,ALL THE BEST FOR THE RESTORATION

Thank you Rajesh!

Sajen · 24th May 2015, 01:44 PM

In this thread was shown also a kanta: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ghlight=shield

And an example from the Tropenmuseum: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...nr_A-2575a.jpg

Attached are two more kanta shields.

Roland_M · 24th May 2015, 02:15 PM

Hi Detlef,

very nice shield and a long way to restore it. I have some old wooden items from Africa and my first step is to apply a special furniture wax to the surface.
It is a mixture of carnauba wax and bee wax with a low viscosity. It makes the surface darker and brings a beautiful shine on it. Old wood is often totally dried out, the wax is very important to avoid further cracks and increase the liftetime of the item dramatically.
This wax is also a very good treatment for horn surfaces.

Regards Roland

Sajen · 24th May 2015, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Roland_M

Hi Detlef,

very nice shield and a long way to restore it. I have some old wooden items from Africa and my first step is to apply a special furniture wax to the surface.
It is a mixture of carnauba wax and bee wax with a low viscosity. It makes the surface darker and brings a beautiful shine on it. Old wood is often totally dried out, the wax is very important to avoid further cracks and increase the liftetime of the item dramatically.
This wax is also a very good treatment for horn surfaces.

Regards Roland

Hi Roland,

thank you for comment. When the wood isn't to dry I am not a fan of waxing shields. I have a good collection of shields from the Moluccas and not one of them has get a waxing. We will see the condition of the wood when it arrived. Only in the case that the wood is extremly dry it will get a coating of wax.

Best regards,
Detlef

Battara · 25th May 2015, 12:10 AM

What a great buy. I wouldn't mind one of these myself. Good luck with all the bone and hair inserts. I've done both in the past (and will again on another piece soon) and it is definitely time consuming.

VANDOO · 25th May 2015, 12:51 AM

CONGRATULATIONS ITS NOT OFTEN COLLECTORS OF LIMITED MEANS ARE ABLE TO ACQUIRE SUCH A TREASURE AT A PRICE WE CAN AFFORD.

WHEN IT DOES HAPPEN IT ALWAYS BRINGS A LOT OF PLEASURE.
ITS GOOD THAT THERE IS SOME INLAY PRESENT TO SEE IF IT IS BONE OR SHELL AND WHAT SPECIES OF COWRIE SHELL WAS USED. THE BODY OF THE SHIELD LOOKS INTACT SO JUST ADDING THE HAIR , SHELL AND OTHER INLAY AND PERHAPS A TOUCH UP OF THE BLACK HERE AND THERE SHOULD HAVE THIS SHIELD LOOKING FIRST RATE. GOOD LUCK WITH IT AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THE FULL RESTORATION.

Sajen · 25th May 2015, 10:02 AM

Thank you both for your kind words. And yes, it will need time to bring it back to old glory. And I think that the pictures are a little bit overexposed and that the surface of the shield is still more black as the pictures may suggest. In the book "Shields" from Benitez & Barbier on pages 156/157 is shown such a shield and it is stated that the inlays are from bone.
This shields coming from Central Northern Sulawesi, Gulf of Tomini or Kulawi. It's also stated that this type of shield is no longer produced in the twentieth century. But it seems unclear to which ethnic group this shields can be attributed: "Kaudern gives it as 'Kulawi', the brothers Paul and Fritz Sarasin attribute it to the Topebato ethnic group, while Albert Grubauer places it among the Tobela who inhabit an area to the east of Sa'dan Toraja. Kaudern (1917-20: fig. 122) goes as far as to state that it could be found among the Minahassa living in the northeast of what used to be Celebes."

* Shields Africa, Southeast Asia and Oceania, Benitez & Barbier

For Gulf of Tomini see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_of_Tomini

Sajen · 25th May 2015, 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VANDOO

GOOD LUCK WITH IT AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THE FULL RESTORATION.

Hello Barry,

it will need time but be sure that I will post pictures soon as the shield is restored.

Regards,
Detlef

24th May 2015, 10:22 AM	#1
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,164	A kanta shield for restauration I never would have the money to buy a kanta shield from Sulawesi in good condition which will cost some thousand $$ since this shields are very rare. By searching through ebay I found some days ago such a shield wrong labeled and in a category where I normally don't search. The shield is in a sad condition but restorable, see pictures from the seller. Most of the hair and nearly all bone plate inlays are missing. The inlays by this shields are from bone and not from MOP. The small shells are nassa shells. The shield is 44" (112 cm) long and 5 1/4" (13 cm) broad. All comments are very welcome. Attached Images Last edited by Sajen; 24th May 2015 at 12:54 PM.

24th May 2015, 10:24 AM	#2
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,164	Here a picture of such a shield in much better condition. I hope that my one will look once similar. Attached Images

24th May 2015, 01:44 PM	#5
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,164	In this thread was shown also a kanta: http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ghlight=shield And an example from the Tropenmuseum: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...nr_A-2575a.jpg Attached are two more kanta shields. Attached Images

25th May 2015, 10:02 AM	#10
Sajen Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany, Dortmund Posts: 9,164	Thank you both for your kind words. And yes, it will need time to bring it back to old glory. And I think that the pictures are a little bit overexposed and that the surface of the shield is still more black as the pictures may suggest. In the book "Shields" from Benitez & Barbier on pages 156/157 is shown such a shield and it is stated that the inlays are from bone. This shields coming from Central Northern Sulawesi, Gulf of Tomini or Kulawi. It's also stated that this type of shield is no longer produced in the twentieth century. But it seems unclear to which ethnic group this shields can be attributed: "Kaudern gives it as 'Kulawi', the brothers Paul and Fritz Sarasin attribute it to the Topebato ethnic group, while Albert Grubauer places it among the Tobela who inhabit an area to the east of Sa'dan Toraja. Kaudern (1917-20: fig. 122) goes as far as to state that it could be found among the Minahassa living in the northeast of what used to be Celebes." * Shields Africa, Southeast Asia and Oceania, Benitez & Barbier For Gulf of Tomini see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_of_Tomini Last edited by Sajen; 25th May 2015 at 10:15 AM.

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24th May 2015, 10:36 AM	#3
BANDOOK Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: AUCKLAND,NEW ZEALAND Posts: 624	GOOD BUYING,ALL THE BEST FOR THE RESTORATION

24th May 2015, 02:15 PM	#6
Roland_M Member Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Germany Posts: 525	Hi Detlef, very nice shield and a long way to restore it. I have some old wooden items from Africa and my first step is to apply a special furniture wax to the surface. It is a mixture of carnauba wax and bee wax with a low viscosity. It makes the surface darker and brings a beautiful shine on it. Old wood is often totally dried out, the wax is very important to avoid further cracks and increase the liftetime of the item dramatically. This wax is also a very good treatment for horn surfaces. Regards Roland

25th May 2015, 12:10 AM	#8
Battara EAAF Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 7,272	What a great buy. I wouldn't mind one of these myself. Good luck with all the bone and hair inserts. I've done both in the past (and will again on another piece soon) and it is definitely time consuming.

25th May 2015, 12:51 AM	#9
VANDOO (deceased) Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: OKLAHOMA, USA Posts: 3,138	CONGRATULATIONS ITS NOT OFTEN COLLECTORS OF LIMITED MEANS ARE ABLE TO ACQUIRE SUCH A TREASURE AT A PRICE WE CAN AFFORD. WHEN IT DOES HAPPEN IT ALWAYS BRINGS A LOT OF PLEASURE. ITS GOOD THAT THERE IS SOME INLAY PRESENT TO SEE IF IT IS BONE OR SHELL AND WHAT SPECIES OF COWRIE SHELL WAS USED. THE BODY OF THE SHIELD LOOKS INTACT SO JUST ADDING THE HAIR , SHELL AND OTHER INLAY AND PERHAPS A TOUCH UP OF THE BLACK HERE AND THERE SHOULD HAVE THIS SHIELD LOOKING FIRST RATE. GOOD LUCK WITH IT AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING THE FULL RESTORATION.