Went to a couple of talks during the week from a guy who did his degree at Auckland. We think he is either an Amrikan or an Aussie. Either way, he has definitely been on the islands too long. Gone troppo? No, he's just a nut bar.
The first talk was about the Polynesian islands in the time of Captain Cook. The most interesting thing was that the islands with ready access to rocks, would trade adzes with those with access to shell. The shell makes good fishhooks. Fragile and brittle, but the best they had.
His second talk was about the famous mutiny. He gave quite a good background to the English society at the time, as well as the habit for tribes to trade the sexual favours of their young women for useful knick-knacks.
Surprisingly, one of the most popular forms of currency was the simple nail. This was the islanders' first introduction to metal, and was quite the game-changer.
Take a nail, flatten it with an adze, and you have a carving tool better than anything they have ever had, particularly for detailed work. Even better, bend the nail, and you have the best fishhook ever. Forget the fragile shell hooks that always break. These things are indestructible by comparison.
So. Gives a whole new meaning to the term 'getting nailed', doesn't it? I'm guessing that's the origin.
In fact, trading nails for a bit of afternoon delight was so popular, that the ship owners would issue a handful of nails to each sailor before they set off from old Blighty. Those ships that were forced to outstay their welcome due weather or repairs were in greater danger of sinking, as the sailors would steal nails from the ship itself to pay their “bills”.
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