Fly Whisk (Tahiri), Austral Islands, early to mid-19th century, wood, fiber, and human hair, 13 x 81.3 cm (The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1979.206.1487). Speakers: Dr. Maia Nuku, Evelyn A. J. Hall and John A. Friede Associate Curator for Oceanic Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Dr. Steven Zucker
Ignore the Western name—spinning this object opened a channel of communication between ancestral and human realms.
Additional resources:
This work at The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Oceania: Art of the Pacific Islands in The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Oceania on The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History
Smarthistory images for teaching and learning:
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