A challenge ... what would this be?

[fernando]

The seller doesn't know ... and neither do i
It is in wood and about 5" long.
Any guess, Gentlemen?

Fernando

.

[David]

Originally Posted by fernando

The seller doesn't know ... and neither do i
It is in wood and about 5" long.
Any guess, Gentlemen?

Fernando

.

Why it's the Holy Slingshot of Antioch!

[Rick]

Originally Posted by David

Why it's the Holy Slingshot of Antioch!

I'm trying really hard not to ROFL David ..

[Jim McDougall]

Hi Fernando,
You are the master of esoteric acquisitions!
Without context or any note of provenance, it would of course be really hard to say exactly what this might be, but the crosses would suggest the obvious Christian associations, and this would possibly be a votive of some kind. Such items were often created in symbolic images, but at this point it would be tough to guess.

All the best,
Jim

[fernando]

Hi Rick,

Originally Posted by Rick

I'm trying really hard not to ROFL David ..

Initials are tricky for a non english dominant .
Is this the meaning?





Fernando

[Rick]

Hi Fernando,
You are correct Sir .
I needed to laugh a bit last night; my apologies .

Do we have an origin for this piece ?

[fernando]

Originally Posted by Rick

... my apologies . ...

Apologies? now i am worried

Originally Posted by Rick

... Do we have an origin for this piece ?

No; i will have to ask the seller, although most probably he has bought it in a street fair and will not help

Fernando

[fernando]

Originally Posted by David

Why it's the Holy Slingshot of Antioch!

Brilliant, David
Why didn't i think of that, in the first place?
... used by the priest to throw the communion wafers into the congregants mouths; good to avoid H1N1 contamination .
Fernando

[fernando]

Hi Jim,
Thanks for the hint .
No, no context or provenance, except that this is a Christian influenced region and, as you well suggest, the crosses are a symbolic reminder.
Only i think they are just alegoric and the object might as well be some kind of utensil, not necessarily with a direct connection to religious paraphernalia.
Fernando

[colin henshaw]

It does have a bit of an African look, so with the Christian imagery, this would point to Highland Ethiopia. Ethiopian priests did carry hand crosses in procession usually made of metal...

Just a guess

[roanoa]

Let's avoid making silly comments about religious practises, such as Holy Communion, which I for one take quite seriously. Having said that, I believe this is an Ethiopian SISTRUM. It is missing the top part with the metal disks.

[fearn]

Hi Roanoa,

Do you have an example sistrum that looks like this? Most of the "ethiopian" sistrums shown on Google have much thinner uprights, and I'd expect to see holes drilled through it to hold the disks if it was a sistrum.

Neat object. I didn't know what a lucet was until Jeff brought it up.

Best,

F

[roanoa]

I looked up Google Images for "lucet" and there is indeed a strong similarity, though there is no hole beneath the "fork". The reason why I suggested a sistrum is because of the religious symbols. A simple string could be tied to the fork and there really is no need for holes to be drilled. Again, on Google Images I found a "How to make a sistrum" with a wooden fork and a string (plus the metal disks). So I still believe it is a possibility, though, of corse, I cannot be sure....

[kronckew]

not all the lucets i saw in the internet had holes. i'm tending towards that option. even monks or nuns would have done something like lucetting to occupy their time and make useful cords.

of course, it is also likely to be a plumber's tool.

[David]

Originally Posted by roanoa

I looked up Google Images for "lucet" and there is indeed a strong similarity, though there is no hole beneath the "fork". The reason why I suggested a sistrum is because of the religious symbols. A simple string could be tied to the fork and there really is no need for holes to be drilled. Again, on Google Images I found a "How to make a sistrum" with a wooden fork and a string (plus the metal disks). So I still believe it is a possibility, though, of corse, I cannot be sure....

I don't think this is a sistrum either. Sure you can make one out of it by stringing disks, but i can discern no wear where the strings would have been, nor do i see any wear where the disks would have no doubt struck on the inside of the forks when in use.

[fernando]

Originally Posted by roanoa

Let's avoid making silly comments about religious practises, such as Holy Communion, which I for one take quite seriously...

No need to be fundamentalist, roanoa . We are joking here; considering a good faith piece of humor a silly coment, it's a remark that deserves no better classification .

Originally Posted by roanoa

...Having said that, I believe this is an Ethiopian SISTRUM. It is missing the op part with the metal disks.

I find it very hard to be a sistrum, and i don't think it is missing any attachement; there is no marks sugesting so.
BTW, did you know that the sistrum, provenant from the egiptian cult to Isis, was forbidden in the VI century Concilium?
So true that it maintained its existence with Copta Christianism until present days.
Fernando

[fernando]

Thank you all for your sugestions, Gentlemen.
This exercize of trying to find out what an unkown thing is, can be a fascinating theme, specially because of the variety of sugestions put up.
So far we have a lucet, a slingshot ( ), a plumbers tool, a hand cross, and a war club ( ).
Although the lucet seems to be the closest sugestion, i don't think it is one; but i am not based in any evidence to so think.
I could swear it is not from Yorkshire ; i am more certain of that than of the eventualy that it might be a weapon .

Fernando.

[tribalarms]

Could it be a distaff?

[David]

Originally Posted by fernando

So far we have a lucet, a slingshot ( ), a plumbers tool, a hand cross, and a war club ( ).

Don't forgets Jim's suggestion of a votive, which i have not discounted yet. In fact, for me right now it seems the most likely.