MAORI CARVED CANOE PROW 



THE NEW SOUTH SEA EXHIBIT 



lit/ liolxri II. Loir. 



XOTKS ox THE SOlTH SKA IIAI,L 



Wri'H the excel)!!!)!! of a .s!!iall Austi-alia!! e.\l!il)it, the S()!Hl! Sea Hall 

 ojxMied to the i)iil)Hc on January 25 is devoted entirely to the 

 Miiseu!!!'s eolleetion from Polynesia and Melanesia. Compared 

 w itli the pri!!!itive folk of other regions of the globe, these South Sea Island- 

 ers are a seafaring race. In striking contrast to the Afrieai! negroes, who 

 generally manifest a sti-ange repugnance to traveling l)y water, their voy- 

 ages are recko!ied !iot hy hundreds l)ut l)y thousands of miles. The most 

 common craft employed i!i the area is a di!g()i!t canoe with an outrigger 

 attachment. The ^Iuse!U!i exhibit comprises a i!U!nber of models of the 

 simple canoes found in Samoa, Fiji and the Society Islands, while a larger 

 !i!()del of a New Zeala!id l)()at illustrates the elaboi-ate carving .sometimes 

 lavished on their structure. The tremendous distances actually traveled 

 by the South Sea Islanders f!-oin their probable home in southeastern A.sia 

 to Hawaii a!id Kaster Isla!!(l ha\(' sti!i!ulated so!i!e scholai's to account for 

 certain sii!iilarities bet\vee!i .South Sea Isla!id ci!lti!!-e ai!d South American 

 culture by the hypothesis that the Polynesia!)s at oi!e time touched the 

 shores of the New World a!!(l si!cceeded i!! leaving their impress on the 

 industi-ial life of its inl!al)itants. This theoiy, although defended by dis- 

 tinguished ethnologists, has been generally rejected, not because the South 

 Sea Islai!ders a!-e consi(le!-e<l ii!capal)le of tra\-e!-sing the .space of twenty- 

 five liundred miles intervening Ix'tween Easter Island and South America, 

 but simply because the alleged cultural resemblances are far too few to 

 be con\inci!ig a!!d ai-e i-eadily e.\plai!ie(l by the assi!!iiptio!i of i!idepe!ide!!t 



de\cloi)!!ient. 



53 



