Three Western and Central Australian Aboriginal Throwing Sticks (1800 to 1900 Australia)

wood

61.00cm high    (  24.02 inches high)

Much of the Aborigines time was spent on searching for food , the men hunting animal life while the women dug for roots and grubs . A great deal of work went into the making of wooden clubs , spears and throwing sticks , shields , spear throwers , flint tools and polished stone axes . All of which were made from naturally occurring materials .
These sticks often had a dual purpose being used for digging as well as for throwing at small game and birds . Water was often a difficult commodity to obtain in Central Australia and sometimes it could be found in the frog ( Cheiroleptes Platycephalus ) which was accustomed to fill up with water and then bury itself in the mud . It would be dug out with sticks such as these and squeezed dry .

Three Western and Central Australian Aboriginal Throwing Sticks . Finely fluted with carved grips , one with incised designs
19 th Century

Sizes : A 61 cm long – 24 ins long
B 60 cm long – 23¾ ins long
C 55 cm long – 21¾ ins long