- Collection type
- Object
- Description
- Jacket from a coconut fibre suit of armour. [BH [OPS move] 4/9/2017]
- Long description
- Jacket from a coconut fibre suit of armour. The jacket is extremely short, and doesn't extend much further than under the armpits. It is fastened up at the front, by cords of coconut fibre. Flaps at the end of each arm, which covers the back of the hand. [BH [OPS move] 4/9/2017]
- Date / Period
- Date made: Before 1900
- Date collected
- By 1900
- Acquisition information
- Purchased: 1900, uncertain Donated: 1900, uncertain
- Materials and processes
- Material Coconut Fibre Plant, Process Knotted
- Dimensions
- Depth: max 47 mm, Width: max 1635 mm, Length: max 312 mm
- Object numbers
- Accession number: 1900.55.650.2 Other numbers: 650, 650a.
- Research and responses
These suits often bore woven designs on the chest – either in a darker shade of coconut fibre, dyed by immersion in the mangrove swamp of the lagoon, or in female human hair. These designs occasionally represented animals such as dolphin in a stylised form. Such suits often have a large square back-board rising from the shoulders behind the head, which would protect the warrior from the numerous stones thrown by the women of his own side at his opponents. The full suit of coconut-fibre armour reflects a form of armour very close to Old World clothing, and it has been suggested by some scholars that early contact with Europeans promoted the invention of this full armour suit in Kiribati. However, the earliest records describe this armour alongside the other forms. In the I-Kiribati myth of The War of the North & the South, the hero Auriaria is dressed for battle by his proud father Tabakea, who says: “Come hither, for I shall make thee ready. Put on the corselet of knotted rope, set thy spiked helmet of fish skin upon thy head, strengthen the mesh of thy corselet and fasten on a belly piece of the hide of a sting-ray. Tell all the men of my side that they are to gather here before dawn, for thou shalt be the leader in this war…If thou art wounded, thou shalt return hither, that I may tend thee”. Auriaria and his brother fight a pitched battle with throwing sticks until one of them falls wounded, and the battle is considered to be over for the day. Like Iliadic warfare, the killing of large numbers was not the aim. Instead, I-Kiribati warfare was about the preservation of male honour, and seeking revenge for insults. It is clear that it was very difficult to fight in these multiple layers of textile and fish skin, with spears 4-5m in length. In I-Kiribati duels, each warrior had an assistant to keep him on his feet and point him in the right direction. Relevant Reading: Murdoch, G.M. (1923) Gilbert Islands Weapons & Armour. In: Journal of the Polynesian Society, Vol.32, pp.174-5. Gudger, E.W. (1930) Helmets from Skins of Porcupine Fish. In: Illustrated Science Monthly, Vol.30, pp.432-442. Guiart, J. (1963) The Arts of the South Pacific. London: Thames & Hudson. Grimble, A. (1972) Migrations, Myth & Magic from the Gilbert Islands. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. Koch, G. (1986) The Material Culture of Kiribati. Suva: University of the South Pacific. Grimble, A.F. (1989) Tungaru Traditions: Writings on the Atoll Culture of the Gilbert Islands. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. Research Conducted for DCF Cutting Ede 2006/2007 [AM]
Search terms: Armour Weapon, Clothing, Armour, Trousers, Jacket