Your Bar's Most Interesting Item

So what is your most interesting item that you have in your Tiki Bar? The one that perhaps causes the most discussion or the most eye-catching? Maybe you have something unique? Or just something you found that always causes people to ask about?

I'll start this off by showing something that I have that always causes a lot of interest.

This is a wooden carved bowl/receptacle from the Papua New Guinea "crocodile people", (The Chambri tribe) who ritually scarify their bodies to imitate their totemic animal.

It's actually an item used in their group circumcision rituals held for boys attaining puberty. It was used to hold the collected foreskins. The crocodile forms both the handles, whilst the bowl shows a post-operative figure. ( I am still in negotiations for the associated knife.) Interesting?

Showed you mine, ...now show me yours!

[ Edited by TIKIGIKI on 2022-09-16 20:19:16 ]

Behold, Mr. Bali Hai's Fish of Mystery!

The Mystery is why the first reaction of all of my bar guests is, "Is that a real Fish?," to which I invariably snarkily respond, "Of course. Doesn't everyone keep dead, smelly aquatic creatures in their Tiki bar?"

It's actually a restaurant replica I bought in the Kappabashi District of Tokyo back in 1985.

Those Japanese replica food items are so damn realistic. But yes, a lot of Tiki Bars DO keep dead aquatic creatures ...hopefully not smelly though? What about all those puffer-fish lamps? I really want one for my bar but with quarantine laws being what they are here there's no hope of importing one. Does anybody know if some clever manufacturer makes artificial ones?

I do have pufferfish lamps, but whatever stink they had faded long ago.

There are some artificial pufferfish lamps out there, but the ones I've seen look like cartoony crap.

[ Edited by MrBaliHai on 2022-09-17 17:57:35 ]

May not be my most interesting item but here is my dead sealife contribution. A "Jenny Haniver" is an alien looking thing made from a dead sculpted and dried stingray. I wanted one but didn't want the dead fish odor so I carved one out of foam

[ Edited by MadDogMike on 2022-09-20 08:52:25 ]

And very well done it is too MDM! I bet a lot of people ask what that is! Seeing your excellent "fake" has given me the idea that maybe I could construct an artificial puffer-fish using an inflated balloon for a mould, some PVA and lots of tissue paper. Burst the balloon when all has dried etc.

Thank you Tikigiki, it was a fun project. The balloon and tissue paper trick works well but I'm not sure what you would use for spikes? Toothpicks would need a base of some sort like a really long thumb tack. Or maybe you could drill little holes in the tissue/PVA after it dried then push and glue toothpicks in? I'm pretty sure there is a file floating around to 3D print pufferfishes. Be sure to document and post the process.

Hey Cool! I made a Jenny Haniver out of clay for my bar!

How about these four little blokes, who frequent my bar, sometimes together, sometimes apart in odd places? Now of course the first three are tiki versions of those clichéd Three Wise Monkeys but people do ask about the fourth one in this photo. It is of course...."and give no fucks!"

[ Edited by TIKIGIKI on 2022-09-26 15:42:53 ]

No pic Slacks Ferret?

Maybe Phineas Foggcutter is the most interesting thing in my bar?

https://tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic_id=54044

I do like the blowpipe dart in his neck!

Hard one...maybe the Spirit Fish Or maybe the mermaid Tigilau

[ Edited by Agent X.c. Incognito on 2022-09-26 18:13:36 ]

The spirit fish is certainly a beauty, and displayed perfectly, but Tigilau is a real eye-catcher! Well done!

My most interesting object is definitely a conversation starter. Some old time members May remember this one and don’t worry folks it’s totally inert and only a very rare practice version. I present the M388 tactical nuke. America’s smallest nuclear device ever deployed. Commonly know as the Davy Crockett Weapons System. The actual working models had a yield equivalent to 20 tons of TNT. Pictured here in the kitchen as the bar is too dark for good photos. Not many of these around anywhere. Again this is a training device 😃

Note to self: Don't piss off Uncle T...

Well you wouldn't want to fall out over it?

"Nuke, ...I am your father..."

[ Edited by TIKIGIKI on 2022-10-01 15:56:50 ]

Here it is! Not a great photo...but it was the only one on my phone.

Ah yes, the Jenny Haniver, and mounted on capiz shells! Very nice!

Looks great, doesn't stink. It's a win-win!