326 Memoirs Dcniicc P. Bishop Museum 



The Hawaiian type is characterized by a rectangular or nearly rectangu- 

 lar cross secliiin, relaliveU' thick bhule, and grinding ujxjn the hit, or the bit 

 and outer surface only. Fully 90 per cent of the Hawaiian specimens have this 

 form, but its only occurrence outside that group appears to be in the Marquesas, 

 where it is one of the rarer forms (PI. xlv, D). 



The southeastern type is characterized by a triangular or subtriangular 

 cross section, a relatively thin blade with a long bevel, and a more or less distinct 

 shoulder where the blade meets the tang. It is often completely ground, and is 

 normally better finished than the Hawaiian type. This is the dominant form in 

 the Society, Austral and Cook islands, and in Easter Island, and is not uncom- 

 mon in the Marquesas, although the specimens from that locality are inferior in 

 finish to those from further south. Several examples of this type are known 

 from New Zealand but it is lacking in the Chatham Islands and in Hawaii. (See 

 PI. XLV, A-C.) 



The New Zealand type is characterized by a rectangular or nearly rect- 

 angular cross section, approaching in this respect the Hawaiian type. It is dis- 

 tinguished from the Hawaiian type by its thinner blade, rounded tang, and by a 

 more or less complete grinding of all surfaces. It does not seem to occur in any 

 other part of Polynesia although certain large adzes from the Chatham Islands 

 may be a variant of this type. 



The toki aa ai)pears to be about equally common in the Society Islands and 

 the Marquesas with related forms in the Cook and Austral islands and possibly 

 in Easter Island. It is lacking in New Zealand and Hawaii. It is impossible 

 to fi.x its point of origin, but the complete grinding characteristic of the type is 

 at variance with the ordinary Marc(uesan practice and it seems probable that it 

 \\as introduced into that group from the south. 



The toki kouma. with slight modifications, is found throughout the same 

 range as the toki aa. A very few examples come from New Zealand. It is en- 

 tirely lacking in Hawaii although a few chisels from that locality have a slightly 

 similar blade and bit form. Some examples from southeastern Polynesia and 

 New Zealand are completely ground. The type is numerically important onlv in 

 the Marquesas, and this, coupled with the fact that all Marcjuesan toki kouma 

 show the rough finish characteristic of the group, may indicate that it was de- 

 veloped there. The occurrence of adzes like that shown in Plate xlvi, />, 2, in 

 whicli a blade and tang of toki kouma type are coupled with a l)road bit, lend 

 support to this theory. 



The toki kouma is sharply set off from all other Polynesian adz types by 

 the fact that it was hafted with the base of the cross section triangle against the 

 handle, a reversal of the ordinary practice. Among true adzes the nearest 



[66] 



