226 G. A. J. VAN DER SANDE. 



building, fishing-tackle, large drums (N°. 1277, PI. XXVIII, fig. 4), and ail sorts of spoils, 

 collected in time of war, such as daggers and arrows were to be found ; the latter things 

 were put against the inside of the roof between the tie beams, and close to thèse things, 

 to my great surprise, the copper things were hanging. I learnt, that long ago, when the father 

 of the now reigning, aged chief of the village (see fig. 163), was still a little boy, thèse 

 objects were said to hâve been found in the water, near the northern banks of Lake Sentâni, 

 north-east of Asé. Though I should be quite willing to believe this story, yet the circum- 

 stance, that thèse three objects were hung up on a post of the roof near the trophies of 

 war, makes me fear, that blood was also shed for thèse things, and that they were 

 captured from foreign navigators, who may perhaps hâve penetrated as far as the lake, or 

 that by barter the objects were obtained from the natives of the sea coast. They had 

 little value for the Asé people, and for a trifling article of barter they became my property. 

 Ail three objects are hollow, and, where the surface is not covered with intaglio work, the 

 material is about 1 m. m. thick; two hâve the shape of an axe, as can be seen in the illustra- 

 tions, the third is chiefly globular. The direction of the helve (now lost) is as on a spade, 

 i. e. towards the edge. The latter is convex, while the sides run with a concave curve from 

 the narrow socket to either end of the edge. The socket-part is flattened in the plane of the 

 axe, and has one flat surface broader than the other, so that the sides stand obliquely, the 

 section of the socket being an equilateral trapezium. 



In shape and composition thèse objects hâve a striking resemblance to the "dond ers chopj es" 

 (thunder-spades), which Rumphius [1740, 212] describes from Celebes. Especially striking is the likeness 

 between N°. 694 and the thunder-spade, illustrated by Rumphius, PI. L, fig. A. This illustration, being 

 described as a thunder-stone on pag. 208 (N°. 1), is of course, a mistake of the compiler. Moreover the 

 wording of that description, does not agrée with this illustration. The latter, however, is in perfect 

 agreement with the ample description, which Rumphius gives on pages 213 and 214 of his first thunder- 

 spade, which name (page 212) was expressly chosen by him, because of the great resemblance to European 

 axes or spades. Now the illustration A represents the most obvious spécimen, spade-shaped, and the way 

 in which the text, after the description, beginning on page 213, with the marginal note: "Een vreemd 

 Donderschopje beschreven", ("A singular thunder-spade described"), continued on pages 214 and 215, 

 passes hère to the figures B. and C, etc., makes it évident, that in the previous description fig. A was 

 meant. I must lay stress upon this mistake, because later explorers were led astray by this; Pleyte [1887, 593] 

 e. g. places the copper thunder-spade, illustrated in fig. A, among the stone axes, type IV of his System. 



Meyer and Richter [1902 — 03, 79, 95, fig. 10] reproduce fig. A with the subscription "stone (bronze?) 

 axe from Banggai", they express some doubt as to the correctness of the description, thinking that Rumphius 

 himself would hâve been misled by the patina, to take a copper axe (a hollow one !) for a green, stone one. 

 I entirely reject this absurd supposition, unworthy of the ingenious scholar. 



Rumphius's "Rariteitkamer" causes more difficulties, owing to the compilers putting the marginal 

 notes, indicating the letters of the figures described, in the wrong places ; this is done both in Chapter VIII, 

 Ceraunia, and in Chapter IX, Ceraunia metallica (= thunder-spades). According to the text (p. 212), there 

 are 2 thunder-stones and (p. 317) 2 thunder-spades figured on PI. L, originating from Rumphius, and 

 represented in the figures A, B, C and D. — Like fig. A (see above), also fig. C in the marginal note, 

 is added to the wrong description. I at once give this list: 



Fig. A means the first described thunder-spade; see p. 213, marginal note: "Een vreemd Donder- 

 shopje beschreven''. 



Fig. B means a thunder-stone; see p. 208, marginal note: "N°. 2", etc. 



