Mysteries from the sea (1)

Some strange things wash up from the sea.  

'Ah, a giant paddle', I said to meself as I spotted this huge hunk of wood lying at the tide mark.

Then I tried to pick it up - had to use two hands.

Heavy?  Ten strokes and a strong man would be knackered.

Who could use such a giant paddle? 

And very old, carved out of a single piece of a

dense, tropical timber not found on these islands. 

For comparison the smaller one is from Bali - 

a regular paddle-size paddle used to propel one 

of their 22ft outriggers.

If not a paddle, then perhaps it's a 

steering oar ? 

The closest I can find are those used 

on the canoes of the Gilbert Islands. 

But such an oar would have wear 

marks made by a gudgeon, throle pins, or a whajamacallit around the shaft.

This has a straight unblemished shaft. 

It's never seen any wear.

So the mystery remains, and somewhere out there roams a very, very big man looking for his paddle.