UHIKANA" TIARA - Lot 199

UHIKANA" TIARA Rare forehead ornament worn by high-ranking individuals. It is composed of a large pearl oyster shell (*Pinctadu maxima) and a sculpted, openwork tortoise shell (*Eretmochelys imbricata) decoration, all mounted on a skilfully braided coconut fiber headband. The central ornament features a star-shaped motif composed of six TIKI heads, framed by a serrated border and topped by two fishhook points. The center of the motif is embellished with a small oval mother-of-pearl plate, itself surmounted by a scallop-edged element. Hiva Oa, Marquesas Islands, Polynesia, Oceania, 19th century. Dimensions: mother-of-pearl 15.3 cm and band 36.6 cm. (Old patina with visible chips and wear). On the reverse, there is an old label that reads: "Casque de Guerre - Hui". A mother-of-pearl plate, possibly from one end of the headband, is attached. Reported by Sergeant Henri JEANPIERRE, Infanterie de Marine, Chef de Poste at Fort de Tahuku (Tahauku) in 1886. A small number of examples of these rare ornaments can be found in public collections: - Museum d'Histoire Naturel, Lille N° NBA 3632. - Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Michael C. Rockefeller Memorial Collection, NY, N° 1978.412.832. - Musée du Quai Branly-Jacques Chirac, Paris N° 71.1930.51.21. - The British Museum, London N° Oc,VAN.399 Collected by Georges Goodman Hewett during the Vancouver voyage (1791-1795). - Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Oldman Collection N° 0L000207. - Academisches Museum, Cook/Forster-Sammlung, Gottingen, N° Oz 109. - Peabody Museum, Harvard, Mass, N° 99-12-70/53588. - Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, N° 1886.1.1340, Collected by Forster (father & son) during Cook's voyage (1774). - Humboldt Forum, Berlin, N° VI 15701, Collected by Karl von den Steinen before 1899. - Etnografiska Museet, Stockholm, N° 1799.02.0025 Collected by Anders (Andreas) Sparrman during Cook's voyage (1772-1775). *Pinctada maxima IUCN status: LC (least concem). *Eretmochelys imbricata: IUCN status: CR A2bd. CITES Annex I