PRM1900_55_270

Title: A message stick held in the Pitt Rivers Museum

Description: Message stick carved with card symbols: heart, spade, club on one side, club on other.

Date Created: 1900

Notes on date created: terminus ante quem

Item type: message stick in a collection

Subtype: unknown

State/Territory: NT

Notes on linguistic areas: The origin of the message stick is Northern Territory Elsie Springs, Australia [PK: presumably Elsey Springs, possibly Mataranka Thermal Pool]

Cultural region: TopEnd

Dimension 1: 85mm

Materials: wood plant

Source types: museum collection

Institution/Holder file: Pitt Rivers Museum object identifier: 1900.55.270

Collector: Field Collector: Harry Stockdale, by 1900 Other Owners: Robert Francis Wilkins purchased from Norman Heywood Hardy who may have obtained it from Harry Stockdale PRM Source: Robert Francis Wilkins, donated 1900

Coordinates: 14°55'22.000800"S,133°08'0.600000"E  (-14.922778, 133.1335)

Media copyright: Pitt Rivers Museum

Notes on coordinates: Approximate coordinates for Mataranka Thermal Pool on Waterhouse River in Elsey National Park. A more accurate location would be Elsey Creek on the Overland Telegraph Line, if this can be found on a detailed map.

URL institution: http://objects.prm.ox.ac.uk/pages/PRMUID1190.html

Notes: Accession book [Hardy] entry - Australia Writing 270 Message stick carved with card symbols diamond heart spade and club first 3 on one side and club on other Elsie Overland Tel Line N Terr SA [Drawing - 'actual size rest not quite in proportion'] Additional Accession Book Entry - Norman H. Hardy collection. [insert] 1900.55.1 - 704 [end insert] Nos 1 - 664 Purchased and presented by R.F. Wilkins in 1900 [insert] pp 1 - 205 [end insert] [insert] various coll. nos. acc. to year of donation [end insert] 670 - 700 have been presented in various years by N.H. Hardy [insert] pp 209-213 [end insert] Additional Accession Book Entry - Note The majority of the Australian specimens were probably collected by H. Stockdale. Those definitely known to have been collected by H.S. have been so indicated in this book Accession Book Entry (III 26) - 'RF WILKINS Esq. [One of] 650 specimens from the Norman H. Hardy coll. (purchased by him). Collection comprising over 300 specimens from Australia. The majority of the rest from New Guinea and Melanesia. For complete list see special ms. catalogue of the Hardy coll.' Written on object - N. Hardy Coll. d.d. R.P. Wilkins, 1900. [270] Elsie O.L. Tel. line, N. Australia. [DCF Court Team 14/2/2003] RDF [1900.55] Handwritten list of Hardy collection - Entry same as Hardy special collection accession book entry. PK: No new info in PRM print-oiut (2019)

Media Files:

Data Entry: Julia Bespamyatnykh, Piers Kelly