Knife and Sheath

Leilira is an archaeological term loosely describing a genre of long, triangular stone blades from central and northern Australia. The blades are knapped from quartzite rock using ancient techniques that were passed on for many generations. Leilira blades were used to butcher animals, and in some ceremonies related to scarification and circumcision. The center of this blade is coated with dark resin taken from the gum coating found on spinifex grasses. The gum is thrashed from the grass and melted to form a sticky tar that the maker shapes around the blade. When it cools, the resin sets strong and hard, creating a protective handle. This example also has a sheath made from paperbark with a tuft of feathers at its top. These blades were made and traded widely throughout central and northern Australia making it difficult to determine an exact origin of this example.