Katoua

Katoua. Club. This is a large katoua, made of wood and is dual-purposed as a cleaver and spear. The cleaver and spear are at either end and the katoua is made to be held in the middle. The cleaver would be aimed forward and spear backwards, so that you can attack front opponent with the cleaver, but also attack behind opponents with the spear (Reference KH). The traditional purpose of such club is for intended bodily harm during combat however, this particular katoua was designed for dances such as takalo (war dance) and meke (drum dance). A great part of the cleaver half resembles a paddle blade. The cleaver has an extension from the blade, a long and thin point measuring at 9mm in depth. For the other half, the shaft narrows and becomes cylindrical, taking the form of a spear. The spear head shows a point outlined by a circumferential protrusion and a dull tip. This katoua has a polished look overall and is dark brown in colour, whereby the spear head encompasses a much darker shade of the brown colour.