Comb

MOA: University of British Columbia

3092/23

Comb made of flexible wood which is split vertically near the end to form nine prongs which are held apart by its binding. The handle is rectangular in shape, flaring out into the prongs of the comb. Where the handle and prongs meet there is a band of braided string wrapped around the handle. There is also one strand of plant fibre wrapped around the handle between the wood and the prongs. The end of the handle is rounded.

  • Narrative

    From the collection of Sister Twyford or Miss J. Pearce (Australia), who had served as missionaries in the Trobriand Islands in the 1920s and Dobu Island in the 1930s.


  • Type of Item comb
  • Culture Trobriand
  • Material wood, plant fibre, cotton fibre
  • Measurements height 0.3 cm, width 6.5 cm, depth 36.5 cm (overall)

  • Previous Owner Ingeborg Marshall
  • Received from Ingeborg Marshall

  • Made in Kiriwina Islands

  • Creation Date before 1940
  • Collection Date between 1920 and 1940
  • Ownership Date before November 18, 2014
  • Acquisition Date on November 18, 2014

  • Condition good
  • Accession Number 3092/0023