Stone club.

Tim Simmons · 1st January 2010, 04:14 PM

Perhaps it is privet/olive like plant family-Oleaceae all would be to some degree similar?, that is far more inclusive though.

Thanks Bryan Northern Australia is of course where flint mines are mentioned in a much earlier link.

I think Ligustrum undulatum is a native Australian privet. I imagine they are all quite hard and useful for tools and utensils.

fearn · 1st January 2010, 11:13 PM

Hi All,

Thing to watch (as Tim already noticed) is the scientific name, not the common name. The wood expert narrowed it to either Ligustrum or something similar to it in the Oleaceae (the olive family).

I'm being annoying in pointing out that I'm not seeing evidence of a tropical privet. Northern Australia is tropical, and Torres Islands are further north (e.g. closer to the equator) than mainland Australia. The fact that the Privet hawk moth is all through the Pacific isn't good evidence, because it eats things other than privet.

Now, I don't have university access right now, so I can't easily find out if there's a close tropical relative of Ligustrum hanging out in the Torres Strait area. If the wood is privet (e.g. Ligustrum species), it strongly suggests that the club was made in a subtropical or temperate setting, somewhere where privet grows.

Best,

F

Tim Simmons · 24th March 2010, 08:25 PM

From the "Australian Museum Sydney" a wonderful paper back book/pamphlet "Australian Aboriginal Stone Implements" 1976 F. D. McCarthy. I post here {if okay with the moderators} a few paragraphs that I hope try to boil down and keep in context, also show how fresh this study is. The books main concentration is what it calls prehistoric camp sites but this is Australia and without solid provable dating prehistoric could only really mean from the early 19th century. My club would be described as a "partially trimmed coroid club" there is some continuity of form when one looks at "fig 61 image no5" which also happens to have been traded quite far. I cannot post the whole book.

Barry if you do not already have this, then you need it. It is cheap, shipping cost more than the book.

Tim Simmons · 24th March 2010, 08:31 PM

Another picture which I could not fit in the last post.

Tim Simmons · 18th June 2012, 02:37 PM

There has been several stone clubs and knives sold by one Australian seller on ebay. These pieces have made go prices. I have kept pictures of one of the examples as it shows the very same way binding the stone which seemed to cause some consern. This club is generally just a litte smaller than my example. It did however go for more than double I paid for mine but I suppose that was a while back.

1st January 2010, 04:14 PM	#1
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,879	Perhaps it is privet/olive like plant family-Oleaceae all would be to some degree similar?, that is far more inclusive though. Thanks Bryan Northern Australia is of course where flint mines are mentioned in a much earlier link. I think Ligustrum undulatum is a native Australian privet. I imagine they are all quite hard and useful for tools and utensils. Last edited by Tim Simmons; 1st January 2010 at 08:19 PM.

24th March 2010, 08:25 PM	#3
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,879	At last bumf on the stone. From the "Australian Museum Sydney" a wonderful paper back book/pamphlet "Australian Aboriginal Stone Implements" 1976 F. D. McCarthy. I post here {if okay with the moderators} a few paragraphs that I hope try to boil down and keep in context, also show how fresh this study is. The books main concentration is what it calls prehistoric camp sites but this is Australia and without solid provable dating prehistoric could only really mean from the early 19th century. My club would be described as a "partially trimmed coroid club" there is some continuity of form when one looks at "fig 61 image no5" which also happens to have been traded quite far. I cannot post the whole book. Barry if you do not already have this, then you need it. It is cheap, shipping cost more than the book. Attached Images

24th March 2010, 08:31 PM	#4
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,879	Another picture which I could not fit in the last post. Attached Images

18th June 2012, 02:37 PM	#5
Tim Simmons Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: What is still UK Posts: 5,879	There has been several stone clubs and knives sold by one Australian seller on ebay. These pieces have made go prices. I have kept pictures of one of the examples as it shows the very same way binding the stone which seemed to cause some consern. This club is generally just a litte smaller than my example. It did however go for more than double I paid for mine but I suppose that was a while back. Attached Images

1st January 2010, 11:13 PM	#2
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Hi All, Thing to watch (as Tim already noticed) is the scientific name, not the common name. The wood expert narrowed it to either Ligustrum or something similar to it in the Oleaceae (the olive family). I'm being annoying in pointing out that I'm not seeing evidence of a tropical privet. Northern Australia is tropical, and Torres Islands are further north (e.g. closer to the equator) than mainland Australia. The fact that the Privet hawk moth is all through the Pacific isn't good evidence, because it eats things other than privet. Now, I don't have university access right now, so I can't easily find out if there's a close tropical relative of Ligustrum hanging out in the Torres Strait area. If the wood is privet (e.g. Ligustrum species), it strongly suggests that the club was made in a subtropical or temperate setting, somewhere where privet grows. Best, F