Te ninimanibakaboto

Te Ninimanibakaboto. Short-range barbed weapon. This light-weight weapon consists of a cylindrical wooden shaft cut from a tree with the bark intact. The dark brown bark has been selectively stripped away to produced a patterned exterior. The tip of one end of the shaft is wound up with a short piece of fabric and a fine cord of te nimwaerere (intertwined human hair and coconut sennit) to which three wete (stingray barbs) are attached, each of a natural colour. The ninimanibakaboto was used as an offensive weapon. Wete are not only lethal due to their naturally serrated edges, but are also known to have poisonous properties.