46 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



vegetable, and mineral kingxloms have all been laid nnder tribute 

 for materials. Teeth, claws, shells, jjearls, bone, hair, ivory, feath- 

 ers, beans, seeds, grasses, leaves, fibers of all kinds, crystals, metals 

 — these are but a few of the many substances that man has 

 learned to use, more or less effectively, in self -adornment. 



Necldaces are universal. Very simple are the garlands of red 

 and yellow flowers, so popular throughout Polynesia. The whale- 

 tooth necklaces of Samoa and the neighboring islands were really 

 attractive, and were so highly valued that only kings and the 

 most powerful chiefs could afford or dare to wear them. They 

 consisted simply of the natural teeth perforated for stringing. 

 They are now rare and seldom seen. Those at present used in the 

 same district are lighter, more slender and artistic, but are made 

 in England and sent out to the islands for trading. An interest- 

 ing neck ornament was the xxdaoa of the Hawaiians. It consisted 

 of a carved and i^olislied piece of bone and ivory attached to an 

 elaborately braided decoration of black hair. This ornament was 



worn only by chiefs of 

 high rank and had some 

 talismanic virtue. Among 

 the necklaces from Aus- 

 tralia are those consisting 

 of kangaroo-teeth strung 

 on thread, and the careful- 

 ly made and really beau- 

 tifid ones composed of cas- 

 sowary feathers. Neck- 

 laces of trophies of dan- 

 gerous hunting, analogous 

 to that from Duruthy Cav- 

 ern already mentioned, 

 are made by Indian huiit- 

 ers from claws of the roy- 

 al Bengal tiger. From the 

 same materials the skillful 

 goldsmiths of India make 

 marvels of beautiful work. 

 Such a one lies before me. 

 The claws are perfectly 

 cleaned and polished, mounted in gold settings, and strung on a 

 chain of gold ; pendent at the lower end is a pretty tiger and a 

 charm, both of gold. Hundreds of years of time and generation 

 of art development lie between the necklaces of Duruthy and Ben- 

 gal ! One of the most instructive lessons in culture history is shown 

 by two South African necklaces described by Wood. The lesson 

 is this ; in any art developuieiif, as new materials are gained, the 



Fig. 3. — Necklace of Whale's Teeth. Samoa. 



