This is an original 19th-century birch wood root burl club from the Penobscot Indians of Maine showing an animal effigy carved head end. A tradition of the Maine Indian Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes the clubs were carved from birch trees that were uprooted and turned on end using the burl found at the roots underground. These were originally carried as a menacing weapon and later for ceremonial use. This 1800’s example shows the root burl ball head with a folk carving showing a long mouth with exposed teeth, hand painted with colors of green, yellow, red, white / cream with round glass eyes inset into the club and held into place with iron nails. The shaft has been stripped of the bark with a drop below the grip which shows more of the bark artfully left. The Penobscot became part of the Wabanaki Confederacy, an alliance of Native American people that included the Passamaquoddy, Micmac (Mi’kmaq), Abenaki, and Maliseet Indians, who occupied Maine and parts of Canada. The name Wabanaki means “People of the First Light” or “People of the Dawnland,” referring to the fact that they lived where the sun rose on North America. Measures overall 20.75-inches in length. The head area is about 5” by 2.25” by 4.25”.