ike (Tongan)

Ike. Bark cloth beater. Ike are used in the process of making ngatu (bark cloth). Strips of the inner paper mulberry are soaked overnight and then beaten with an ike on a board to flatten and stretch the strips into bigger and thinner sections. These are then pasted with other sections to make up a completed ngatu. This ike is carved from one block of wood, most likely toa wood as it is heavy and can withstand the labour intensive beating.

35060 (ethnology)

Pacific