Catalogue of the Objects of Ethnotypical Art in the National Gallery (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos or missing text. Not indexed. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1878. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... PREFACE. Neaelt all the ethnological specimens in the National Gallery have been collected from various islands in the large expanse of ocean stretching from the west coast of America on the one side, to the east coast of Asia on the other; and having for its southern limit the Antarctic Circle, and for its northern the fiftieth parallel of north latitude. This portion of the globe--whose extent from west to east at the Equator is equivalent to 150 deg. of longitude--forms two grand divisions, known as the North and South Pacific Oceans, in both of which are numerous groups of volcanic and coral islands. Oceanica--the name given by French voyagers and geographers to this region--comprises Australia, the East Indian Archipelago, and other smaller islands of the Pacific; and it has been divided into five minor departments--namely, Australia Polynesia Melanesia Micronesia Malaysia. The arms, arts, and manufactures of the natives of the first three divisions are very fully represented by excellent examples in the National collection, Micronesia but imperfectly, and Malaysia scarcely at all. t B Weapons and implements from Africa and America, and archaic native weapons from the Old World, are greatly to be desired; but of these the specimens in the Gallery are few, and scarcely to be regarded as representative of any people or period. Reference will be made in these pages only to those regions and islands from which ethnological specimens have been obtained and included in the Catalogue, except in cases where it may be necessary to supply information for the purpose of more completely illustrating the character of the weapons and manufactures. The occupation by natives speaking Polynesian dialects of some islands in Kelaenonesia (a division hereafter referred t...