IMPLEMENTS OF SUPERSTITION AND MAGIC— HAMLYN-EABEIS. 



From the aborigines of the Roper 

 River district, the Wongalarra tribe (Ura- 

 pmiga), Northern Territory, where death- 

 bones are usually of the smaller variety, 

 comes a ceremonial head-dress collected by 

 Mr. M. J. Colclough in 1909, carrying in its 

 interior a death-bone, the presence of which 

 is entirely unknown to anyone save the 

 owner. When the plume is no longer in 

 use the .death-bone is placed in its bark 

 sheath and secreted away. (Q. M. Specimen 

 No. E 11/30a.) Plate V, Figure 1, demon- 

 strates a Burdekin River specimen of a 

 death-bone in a bark sheath, bound with 

 human hair and securely fastened with 

 native gum, both ends of the sheath being 

 provided with tufts of emu feathers. The 

 sheath of such a specimen as this is really 

 intended as a disguise, and -as the bone is 

 securely fastened with gum one would 

 naturally suppose that it would not be 

 withdrawn except on special occasions. In 

 reality, this is the case. Only .at great 

 ceremonies — arranged to settle all kinds of 

 disputes — would such a death-bone be 

 opened up and used, to be again sealed 

 securely after the affair was over. Text- 

 figure 1 is a radiograph 5 of this implement 

 showing the outlines of the death-bone in 

 its interior; the bone probably represents 

 the proximal end. of an emu tibia with part 

 of the fibula in position, the upper portion 

 being anchylosed. This death-bone is 

 typical of a more elaborate implement than 

 is usually used in Queensland. Specimens 

 of this sort are rare. (Q M. Specimen No. 

 QE 14/558.) 



5 1 would here like to acknowledge my indebtedness to Dr. Doyle for his kindness in 

 making the radiograph for rne. — E.H.H. 



