War Club, Marquesas Islands

War clubs from the Marquesas Islands represent the pinnacle of Polynesian decorative art, crafted by skilled artisans of the Marquesan people in what is now French Polynesia. These ceremonial and functional objects, often called 'u'u,' are distinguished by their elaborately carved surfaces featuring the iconic tiki face motif and intricate geometric patterns. Highly prized by 19th-century collectors and museums, they were traded and collected during the height of European exploration and continue to command significant prices at major auction houses.