KANAK ceremonial axe called monstrance axe New Caledonia H. 56 cm Axe featuring an imposing jadeite disk set in a piece of pitch fixed in half an inverted coconut. Two holes allow the whole to be secured with cords. The handle is wrapped in barter cloth, braid, natural fibers and dogfish hair. These objects were used by prestigious orators and men of high rank. The jadeite disc, a sacred stone in Oceania, is an emblem of prestige and dignity, displayed at grand celebrations. Provenance | Collection of Paul Cazalis de Fondouce, geologist and anthropologist (1835-1931). A graduate of the Ecole Centrale and collaborator of Marcel de Serres, he discovered the first complete mammoth skeleton in the Gard region in 1869 (Museum paleontology gallery), which was later passed down through the family. Consultant | Jean-Pierre Lacoste

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