naments. Two of them are to be seen in the British Museum."
These ancient ear ornaments were regarded as phallic emblems by the missionaries in Mangaia, hence they abolished the native dances in which the ornaments were worn (33, pp. 252, 253). The third ornament (no. +6009) bore the label, "Rarotonga Chiefs ear ring [rei]. Rev. W. W. Gill. 26 Ap. page 1081893." It is probable that the ornament had been given to a Rarotongan chief, but that the island of origin was Mangaia. (See figure 56, a, b, c.) Details of the suspensory lug are shown in figure 56, d, e, f.
Figure 56.—Ivory ear ornaments (British Mus.): a (no number), two balls (1, 1) connected mesially and above to suspensory lug (2); greatest height, 23 mm.; greatest width, 29 mm.; greatest thickness, 19 mm.; fine human-hair braid tied around constricted neck of lug, looped into a small circle (3) about 9 mm. in diameter, crossed and seized together for a short distance (4), and then looped into a wider circle (5) about 24 mm. in diameter. b (+6009), similar to a, but upper mesial circumference of balls not so rounded; height, 23 mm.; width, 33 mm.; thickness, 20 mm.; holes bored through from two sides of lug neck into central pit and suspensory braid passed through holes across floor of pit; intermediate crossing of loops (a,4) has loosened. c (no number), body (1, 1) of ornament similar to b but suspensory lug has no circumferential lip but is divided by a mesial notch into two sharp ridges (2, 2) perforated for suspensory braid; height, 18 mm.; width, 25 mm.; thickness, 13 mm.; suspensory braid (3) shown crossed (4) but seizing fiber has disappeared; ivory much darker than a and b. d, side view of lugs of a and b, showing constricted neck (6), circumferential lip (7) and central pit (8). e, upper surface of lugs of a and b, showing circular form of flat surface and shallow central pit (8). f, upper surface of c showing suspensory lug divided into two transverse ridges (2, 2) by mesial transverse notch and horizontal holes through middle of ridges.
The central pits in the lugs of two of the ornaments (fig. 56, a, b) illustrate an ingenious technique used in boring holes through an ivory object. The Polynesian drill points made funnel-shaped holes and to avoid a large hole of entry as compared with a small hole of exit, objects were drilled from either side until the two holes met in the middle. The thicker the object, the larger the holes on either side. By cutting out a central pit in the top of the lug, the distance to be traversed by the drill point was materially reduced, and two holes were drilled from either side into the central pit. In one of the ornaments (fig. 56, b), the craftsman was content to loop the suspensory braid around the constricted neck; but in the other (fig. 56, a), the holes were drilled and the braid passed through. An identical technique has been observed in the ivory neck ornaments of Mangareva (77, p. 173).
The suspensory element was of fine human hair braid. After being attached to the suspensory lug, the two sides were crossed to form a small page 109loop or circle, and the short overlap was seized together with coir fiber. The remaining ends of the hair braid were then united in a wider loop and reinforced by the addition of two coir fibers. This upper circle was then seized throughout its course with single coir fibers in two colors which were used alternately for a few turns to add color decoration to the suspensory element (fig. 57).
Figure 57.—Technique of suspension element. a, a lightcolored coir fiber (1) has one end (2) bent forward on suspension foundation (3) and makes two complete turns around foundation and over bent forward end. b, forward end (2) is bent back and passed under first half-turn in a half-hitch to fix commencement end. A dark-colored coir fiber (4) is now laid along foundation. c, light fiber now makes three complete turns (5) around foundation, fixes commencement end of dark fiber, and is turned forward along foundation. Dark fiber (4) is brought down over light fiber and makes three complete turns when