Movie: Tabua, whale tooth or not?

Peter Waqatairewa talks about Tabua, whale teeth, Fiji's most valuable cultural artefact.

Rights:
© Australian Museum and Peter Waqatairewa
Producer:
Finton Mahony
Presenter:
Peter Waqatairewa

Transcript

The is the tabua, which is from the teeth of a sperm whale, and it is Fiji’s most valuable artefact. To give you an illustration of how valuable it is, in the olden days if one of the chiefs during the tribal warfare would like a rival to be killed, and he couldn’t do it himself, he’ll take this tabua to another tribe and ask them. And once they accept it they will go after that other chief.

It was presented in the 19th century from one chieftain to another chief, to kill an Australian missionary. That’s how important it is. It’s also used as a bride-price when families – they approach another family for a bride, they take a tabua. And if it’s accepted it’s the first stage of the ritual of getting married.

It can be used as anything, just like money. For land, purchase of land. Traditionally they approach for a piece of land, they present a tabua. That’s how important it is. It’s currency for life and death in Fiji.

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Tags pacific collections, Fiji, Tabua, whale tooth, Peter Waqatairewa, money, bride-price, currency, sharing stories, finton, artifact, pacific, sperm, teeth, intangible,

3 comments

Naocobau - 8.04 PM, 28 April 2011
The Tabua is clearly a sperm whale tooth..may be the one in the pacific collection is not,,Our ancestors in Fiji have been using Sperm whales tooth long before the European even started whaling..Fijians get their tabua from stranded whales in the pacific islands,either fiji or Tonga .Battering tabua with fijian arts ,sandalwood and big canoes ,,,,trading lasted till the 19 centuries,,,Every year whales are still found standed in fiji and other pacific islands...
Finton Mahony - 4.01 PM, 12 January 2010

Hello Errol.

Thanks for your comment. We'll continue to look into the different perspectives around this collection item.

errolfuller123@btinternet.com - 9.01 PM, 02 January 2010
This tabua is clearly not a sperm whale tooth. It is difficult to identify from the picture, but it is a nineteenth century 'fake' made from a walrus, elephant or hippo. Such items are fairly common and were imported into Fiji because whale teeth were relatively hard to come by. This is all well known and your people should have been aware of it and not given inadequate information.

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