'A fire in the ship'

On Monday 1st August 1774, the Resolution was off the coast of Erromango, one of the islands of Vanuatu.  In 'A Voyage Round the World' George Forster described a terrifying incident as they approached the island  - 'Towards ten o'clock, we were most dreadfully alarmed by a fire in the ship.  Confusion and horror appeared in all our faces, at the bare mention of it; and it was some time before proper measures were taken to stop its progress: for in these moments of danger few are able to collect their faculties and to act with cool deliberation.  The mind which unexpected and imminent danger cannot ruffle for a time, is one of the scarcest phænomena in human nature; no wonder then, that it was not to be met among the small number of persons to to whom the ship was entrusted.  To be on board of a ship on fire, is perhaps one of the most trying situations that can be imagined; a storm itself, on a dangerous coast, is less dreadful, as it does not so entirely preclude all hopes of escaping with life.  Providentially, the fire of this day was very trifling, and extinguished in a few moments.  Our fears suggested that it was in the sail-room; but we soon found, that a piece of Taheitee cloth, carelessly laid near the lamp in the steward's room had taken fire, and raised a quantity of smoke, which gave the alarm.'

Burn marks on 1886.1.1235 (Forster No. 15)

Detail of damage to 1886.1.1235

Several pieces of barkcloth in the Forster collection have burn marks on them, which had always puzzled us.  Could the fire on board the Resolution be the reason why?  Interestingly, during a visit last week from Adrienne Kaeppler, curator of Oceanic Ethnology at the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, a barkcloth thought possibly to be from Hawaii was identified as Tahitian, and it too has significant fire damage.   

Barkcloth 1886.1.1253.1 Showing more extensive fire damage

We are fairly sure that there are several 'lost' barkcloth pieces from the Forster collection in the Pitt Rivers museum, but since they have lost their labels, or maybe didn't ever have a unique Forster Number label (for example, Forster No. 48 in the Catalogue of Curiosities is described as 'Another parcel of Otaheitee cloth' and it is unlikely that each had a label) identification is difficult.  We can be fairly sure however that this newly discovered piece of barkcloth is part of the Forster collection - and maybe even the piece mentioned by Forster, 'carelessly laid near the lamp in the steward's room…'

'A bundle of arrows, some of them poisoned.'

Arrows, 1886.1.1184, 1185, 1186, 1190, 1191

These arrows are from Vanuatu, and described in the 'Catalogue of Curiosities', under the heading 'Mallicollo' as '144. A bundle of arrows, some of them poisoned.' and, from Tanna, No. 152 'A bundle of arrows.' The arrows are made from reed, and most have sharpened wooden points.  One, 1886.1.1844, at the bottom in the above photo, is recorded as having a bone point when it was transferred from the Ashmolean Museum to the Pitt Rivers in 1886 - this arrow is recorded in plate XXVIII of Cook's account of the second voyage.  

'Weapons &c at Mallicollo and Tanna' The arrow 1886.1.1844 is probably No.5

As the Resolution approached Malakula on Thursday 21st July 1774, George Forster recorded that some islanders approached in canoes.  'By degrees they ventured near the ship, and received a few pieces of Taheitee cloth, which they eagerly accepted.  Presently they handed up some of their arrows in exchange; at first such as were pointed with wood only, but soon after even such as were armed with points of bone, and daubed with a black gummy stuff, on which account we suspected them of being poisoned. A young Tahitian puppy was therefore wounded in the leg with one of these arrows, to try its effect, but we perceived no dangerous symptoms.'

A day or two later, Forster mentions poisoned arrows again.  'They began to sell us their common arrows, and afterwards those which were poisoned; but advised us not to try the points against our fingers, making us understand, by the plainest signs, that with a common arrow, a man might be shot through the arm without dying, but that the slightest scratch with one of the other sort was mortal.  If notwithstanding this information, we attempted to bring the point on our fingers, they caught hold of our arm, with the most friendly gesture, to save us, as it were, from imminent danger.'

During the night, one of the sailors on board the Resolution caught a shark nine feet long, which was eaten by the crew.  Although Forster did not regard them as palatable, he thought they they were 'at all times preferable to salt provisions.'  However, when the shark was cut open, it was found to have the bone point of a poisoned arrow in its skull.  'The wound was healed so perfectly that not the smallest vestige of it appeared on the outside….Fishes therefore are not affected by these arrows, which are thought to be poisoned.'

When summing up the visit to Malakula, Forster again reflected on poisoned arrows, noting that 'it is at this moment doubtful, whether their arrows are really poisoned.  The dog on which we made the experiment on the day of our arrival recovered perfectly without any assistance…Another experiment was tried upon the sequel upon a different dog; an incision was made in his leg with a lancet, and the gummy substance, supposed to be the poison, was laid into it, and covered with a plaster.  The dog was very lame for a few days, from the swelling and festering of the wound, but gradually recovered like the first.'

According to Felix Speiser, in 'Ethnology of Vanuatu: An Early Twentieth Century Study, trans. D.Q.Stephenson (Bathurst, 1990 (orig. 1923)), 200-201) the resinous substance used to coat bone arrows was not necessarily poisonous, but it often contained tetanus bacilli, which would often lead to death.  Some reports suggest that arrowheads were also treated with putrefying flesh from decomposing bodies. (See George Forster, 'A Voyage Round the World' Vol II.  Ed. Nicholas Thomas and Oliver Berghof, University of Hawai'i Press, Honolulu, 2000.)

A club from Malakula

Club 1886.1.1466

This club is from Vanuatu, from the island of Malakula, which Cook visited at the end of July 1774.  It is number 142 in the 'Catalogue of Curiosities', and is one of only three items collected in 'Mallicollo', the others being a bow and a bundle of poisoned arrows.  Meetings with the inhabitants of Malakula only occurred on the beaches - the visitors were not permitted to venture inland.  As a result the objects collected here are the kinds of things that would have been carried on the person.

George Forster writes in 'A Voyage Round the World' that 'Besides bows and arrows they wore a club of the casuarina-wood, which hung from their right shoulder , from a thick rope, made of a kind of grass.  This club was commonly knobbed at one end, and very well polished, like all their manufactures.  It did not exceed two feet and a half in length, and appeared to be reserved for close engagement, after emptying the quiver.'  The inhabitants of the island were persuaded to sell their arms for 'a handkerchief, or a piece of Taheitee cloth, or English frieze' (a type of coarse cloth).  As they departed Malakula, Forster said that that 'the natives came to us with all their fourteen canoes, and sold us great numbers of arrows of all kinds and some clubs….they seemed very eager to part with their arms for Taheitee cloth.'

Club head

The club in the Pitt Rivers collection is Janus-headed, having two faces with highly conventionalised features. Lissant Bolton, in her chapter entitled 'Place, Warfare and Trade 1700-1840' in 'Art in Oceania: A New History' (Peter Brunt et al. London: Thames and Hudson, 2012) writes that 'part of the Forster Collection now in the Pitt Rivers  Museum, Oxford, is a club collected at Port Sandwich, Malakula Vanuatu, in July 1774. Kirk Huffman identifies it as a "rare type of high-status club" that signifies links between south-east Malakula and west Ambrym, north Ambrym and south Pentecost. Although the club was very likely made where it was collected, it appears that this, one of the first objects ever collected by Europeans in island Melanesia, was an item in a ritual network that linked a number of adjacent islands and regions. This kind of club could be used as a weapon, but also in ceremonies and as a dance club. It was above all an object that related to a complex system of status enhancement: it would have been owned by a high-ranking man, and would have signified his status as a someone to be treated with respect.'

A mat from Mo'orea

1945.11.130 Mat, Mo'orea

This mat (Museum  number 1945.11.130) from Mo'orea, an island 17km NW of Tahiti, was collected by Joseph Banks on Cook's first voyage (1768-1771), and subsequently given by Banks to Christ Church, his old Oxford college. 

The mat is plaited from hibiscus bast fibres, and is unfinished.  The strips of plant material are very brittle, and unsuitable storage over the years has resulted in several large tears in one corner of the mat.

Tears in one corner of the mat

The conservation treatment on the mat began by surface cleaning using a dry, soft sponge to remove dirt residues.  This was followed by humidification using an ultrasonic humidifier to restore some moisture and strength into the plant fibres.

The tears needed to be reinforced in some way, to prevent further damage which would result in sections of the mat being torn off completely.  The material used was Japanese tissue, a type of hand-made long fibred mulberry paper.  The paper was painted to blend in with the overall colour of the mat, using powder pigments in an acrylic matte medium, and narrow strips were cut which were the same width as the strips of hibiscus bast used to make the mat.  A 'needle' was cut from thick polyester film, and a strip of tissue tacked to the end using superglue.

Weaving a strip of Japanese tissue across the tear

The strip of tissue could then be woven across the tear, using tweezers to manipulate the needle, which was then cut off.

Several strips in place

This was repeated many times, and the ends of the tissue strips were then adhered in place with a paste made from arrowroot starch, which is easily reversible in water should someone in future want to remove the paper strips.  Once one end was securely fastened, the ends strips could be gently pulled to tension then across the tear, and the other end secured with a drop of starch paste.

Treatment nearing completion

There are currently no plans to display this mat, but now it is more stable and less likely to be damaged by handling if required for study by a research visitor.

Storing "Curiosities"

This post was written by Katherine Clough, who is currently volunteering with the Cook-Voyage project helping to provide customized storage solutions for the collection artefacts.

Many of the artefacts currently undergoing conservation during this project will be redisplayed in a fantastic new display within the Pitt Rivers Museum dedicated to the Cook-Voyage collections. In the meantime, temporary storage solutions are required for many of the objects after conservation treatment. Some of them, for example, the larger bark cloths, may have to return to storage. Stored objects will not have been neglected, but have each had customized storage boxes personally (and lovingly) made for their protection and for easier accessibility for future research purposes. One of my main tasks as a volunteer has to be construct boxes for these barkcloths.

Historically, the bark cloths were previously stored folded and stacked. This has caused uneven wear on the folded areas. Now each bark cloth has been unfolded, cleaned and conserved, and then rolled around custom-made calico supports, as described in previous posts on this blog. The final stage of storage preparation has involved the careful measurement of the rolled bark cloth and the making of a lidded box to these measurements. 

Kathy and Conor, our ICON conservation intern, making a Correx box

Making a box out of Correx board (sheets of corrugated plastic) is not too complicated, but has required a fair amount of crawling on the floor due to the sizes of the bark cloths. Firstly, the box net is drawn on the large board using the measurements from the object. The plastic is then cut out and scored with a craft knife. Finally the side-flaps are cut and folded, and secured in place using brass paper fasteners. A little bit of mathematics is required to work out the required dimensions of the corresponding lid so it fits the box snugly. The bark cloths are characteristically long (over 1 metre) but only about 20 centimeters wide and high when rolled. Therefore, most of the boxes I have made so far are also long and thin.

Cook-voyage collection objects stored on padded boards

In addition to box making duties, I have had also helped with other storage requirements. I have assisted, along with other volunteers, with sewing fabric supports for objects in the Cook-Voyage collection, from the long calico tube supports for bark cloth rolls to padded supports for smaller objects. I have also been ‘outsourced’ from working on the Cook-Voyage collections, helping to sew cushioned supports to meet transportation requirements of several North American artefacts that went out on loan to an exhibition in Germany earlier this year.

Completing these storage preparation tasks has enabled me to see artefacts from the Cook-Voyage collection close up and during the processes of conservation, and has given me a fascinating insight into the workings of the conservation department at an ethnographic museum. More recently, I have been assisting by photographing the labels removed from the Cook Collection artefacts in the 1970s, creating a visual archive that will be available on the new website for this project. Currently, I am also reading George Forster’s account of Cook’s second voyage, A Voyage Round the World, taking notes whenever exchanges occur between the local populations of the Pacific and the European visitors. This information will be formatted to create an accessible record to make tracking potential provenances of Cook-Voyage objects and similar items easier in future research.

As a recent graduate of Art History, Anthropology and Archaeology, who is about to begin an Anthropology Masters later this year, I have found my experience so far very enriching and it will certainly add to my growing understandings of material culture research. I have genuinely enjoyed helping with these practical and research tasks, but knowing that my boxes, cushions and additional tasks are contributing to the preservation and research potential of such an important and iconic collection makes it even more worthwhile. 

Thanks go to the other Museum volunteers who have contributed to the project.  Their work is very much appreciated.