Puzzle - Kanak / New Caledonia

The Kanak people are a Melanesian ethnic group living in New Caledonia. Maces are a particularly popular style of weapon among the natives of this region. Among the Kanaks, a club is "an object whose point of percussion is in the axis of the handle" while a puzzle is "an object whose point of percussion is offset from this axis". Thus, this object is considered a club and are made of a hard and exotic wood, reminiscent of their region of origin. The "Strike Head", upper part of the club was often made up of a root knot and were originally decorated with plants, hair or fabric with a magical charge. In the case of this item, the spikes adorning the punching head lend a profound power to this item.