THE QUEST FOR INFORMATION RETRIEVAL: AN INSCRIBED RELIC FROM ANCIENT RAPA NUI (EASTER ISLAND) – Part II.

In Part I of this article (Melka and Schoch 2021), 1 we described an antique wooden artifact from Easter Island, known as the “ Lutz – Terasaki fragment”, that bears a single rongorongo glyph. Here we focus further on the “ Lutz – Terasaki fragment”, gleaning as much evidence as we can by resorting to a complex analysis. The ethno-linguistic, epigraphic, and xylological data point – thus far – toward the remains of an artifact of utilitarian and/or ritualistic scope. In order to exhaust every potentiality regarding the “ Lutz – Terasaki fragment” and the meaning of the glyph that it bears, we must consider similar contexts that may appear in the future if other artifacts are located bearing the same or a similar glyph. It is acknowledged that in the absence of new corroborating evidence, even the best - formed hypotheses concerning rongorongo glyphs and sequences may stretch too thin and, quite often, be summarily dismissed or simply ignored. Continuing investigation and rational conversation with scholars of Rapa Nui, we have found to our profit, are efficacious ways to respond to hypothetical settings. To suggest otherwise would be highly arguable or erroneous.

We acknowledge that Easter Island has churned out "mysteries" for more than a century and a half, and the greatest of all of them seems to be its premissionary classical script. 8 Given the customary uncertainties and all too typically conflicting views over particular rongorongo (= RR) glyphs or the script in general during the post-1864 period (1864 marking the year of the arrival of the missionary Joseph-Eugène Eyraud [1820 -1868] on the island), 9 phonetic decipherments have produced results that wind up in multiple, random directions. Suffice to say that under the phonetic circumstances, scholarly discord is the standard measure in the rongorongo studies. Attractive and plausible hypotheses, on the other side, bearing the mark of a careful interpretation have paved the way for a growing consensus as to the meaning of certain individual glyphs, parallel sequences, or text categories. Decanting for the latter approach would be the wisest thereof. In like manner, when it comes to interpreting and/or deciphering the rongorongo signs, we believe the strict tenet "let professionals [= epigraphers, linguists] do their job" should be viewed with reservation. 10 The so-called amateurs (whether in a "go-it-alone" mode or cooperating at the present time or in the years to come) may prove invaluable in the elucidation of various scribal aspects and support materials too, so long as they base their estimates on hard facts 11 and review objectively and thoroughly the RR-related literature.
In terms of iconography, the "Lutz-Terasaki" glyph seems to represent an avian life-form, possibly integrating a "human"-like body feature (Fig. 1). As revealed in Georgia Lee's article, bird symbolism was widespread in Polynesia, 12 finding its way into cultic events and other visual manifestations. The author states unequivocally further on, "Seabirds in particular influenced the imagination of Polynesians". 13 The ancient Rapanui inhabitants were not free from such a cultural inclination. The "air of mystery", the appeal, and gracefulness that portrayed most of the avifauna was thus transferred into the cult of the Birdman, petroglyphs, rock art, stone figurines, wooden carvings, the design of rongorongo glyphs, etc. Examples are echoed, e.g., in Walter Lehmann's caption "Statuette de bois en forme d'homme, mêlée de celle de pingouin. St. Pétersbourg. (Acad. Imp. des Sciences.) [Wooden statuette in a human-like form, a composite with that of a penguin (sic). Saint Petersburg. (Imperial Academy of Sciences.)]"; 14 in Louis-Charles Watelin who comments, "Nous retrouvons l'homme-oiseau dans un signe tout à fait semblable aux sculptures d'Orongo (Île de Pâques)

gardant alors son profil d'oiseau […]"
[We find the bird-man in a sign (= glyph) altogether similar to the sculptures of 'Orongo (Easter Island) while keeping his bird profile (…)]; 15 in Alfred Métraux, "Birds treated in exactly the same style as those on the [rongorongo; our note] tablets are carved on rocks, especially in caves and at Orongo where ceremonies dedicated to Makemake were held"; 16 in one of the early articles of Thomas S. Barthel, "Con particular expectación se indagarán las inscripciones buscando datos que hagan referencia a problemas especiales de la isla de Pascua, tales como el culto ornitológico de Orongo, las grandes estatuas de piedra y 1as figuras talladas en madera. Desgraciadamente, los resultados han de ser muy escasos. De todas maneras, claramente se manifiesta la valoración de la golondrina de mar como pájaro sobrenatural, y en la mención de tangata manu hay reminiscencias a los juegos atléticos de Orongo [The (rongorongo) inscriptions will be examined with particular expectation, looking for referential data to special topics of Easter Island, such as the bird cult of 'Orongo, the great stone statues and the wooden carved figurines. Unfortunately, the results will have to be meager. In any event, it is clearly shown the distinction of the sea swallow as a supernatural bird, and in the mention of the birdman there are 12 LEE, G. The Rock Art of Rapanui,p. 114. 13 Ibid., p. 114. 14 LEHMANN, W. reminiscences of the athletic games of 'Orongo]; 17 in Thor Heyerdahl's statement, "Birds of various kinds are the most commonly represented animals in Easter Island art, which is otherwise dominated by human figurines"; 18 in Eric Kjellgren, who depicts a number of wooden "birdman" effigies; 19 or in particular signs of the classical script, e.g., a "birdman" /610/ facing left-toright (Da3); another "birdman" /607y/ facing (this time) right-to-left (Da7); a "birdman" /610/ holding a "fish"-shaped glyph /700f/ with "thread"like filaments (Ra7); a "sitting birdman" /638/ juxtaposed to "sea turtle"like glyph /291a/ with a "hollow belly" (Br7  22 ) occur in different sequential contexts and in (apparently) some dissimilar text genres, this would require the design of a specific and profound study. The surplus of scribal variants (or allographs) across the corpus is now a matter of public scholarly record. One of the possible reasons for their incidence is that during the hours-long carving sessions, various scribes worked off their tensions through aesthetic and "playful" glyphic choices. An interesting piece of information regarding the assumed time spent on engraving artifacts is possibly found in Albert van Hoorebeeck. 23 Whilst discussing a false tablet (= a replica of the original tablet "Keiti"), he 24 clarifies that the work on that object owes to the modern Belgian investigator F(rançois) Dederen. 25 Van Hoorebeeck 26 later reveals, "The author [= Dederen], otherwise satisfied with that fake [= imitation; our note], had dedicated some 160 hours of work, using an instrument on whose nature he preferred to keep silence […]. We can imagineincorrectlythe time the [premissionary; our note] Rapanui spent in carving their tablets". Although the information on the true antecedents is inaccessible, it is reasonable to state that unlike machines, humans are unable to perform extremely repetitive tasks with a low rate of error. 27 Translated into the context of the classical rongorongo script, it means that a single or an (especially) complex glyph could not be identically carved fifty or eighty times along a text of 1000, 2000, or 3000 elements. Whether in terms of invested time or efforts, we feel that the former rongorongo scribes found the pictorial-like nature (= design) of many glyphs 22 This glyphic design is printed in MÉTRAUX, A. Two Easter Island Tablets in Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum,Honolulu,p. 2,FIG. 2;cf. also FISCHER,S. R. Rongorongo: The Easter Island Script,History,Traditions,Texts,p. 461,RR 12a3. 23 VAN HOOREBEECK,A. La Vérité sur l'Ile de Pâques,p. 269. 25 For an update on the work of the Belgian artist and connoisseur, one should refer to DEDEREN, F.  Cryptology,p. 46;STOKES,Present and Future,. In mentioning the "digital" aspects versus the "humanities" requirements in the automatic documentation of medieval manuscripts, STOKES, P. A. ibid., considers the following, "Certainly any system must allow for a lot of scribal variation. Manuscripts are written by people, not machines, and people change according to many different factors, so this must be taken into account by any paleographical method, digital or otherwise".
"costly". 28 Consider here the "kinetic"-/ rhythmic-like sequence attested on Cb9-10 (= Cv9-10); 29 having an apparent resemblance to an "animated clip" the carving of said sequence would have not been trifling, requiring imagination and also a particular skill set. On the other hand, using a computer keyboard, the letter "O" or the ligature "OE" can be printed in a tedious and most correct fashion over a text of relative length. One may realize by now the overall contrast between the two scenarios if we recall that the RR scribes had to use differently shaped slabs and sticks of wood with uneven surfaces as the writing medium, along with obsidian gravers / flakes 30 and a shark's tooth to calibrate and render the glyph-forms.
At this point, we shall revisit a hypothesis on the meaning of glyph /670/, the so-called "manu moe" [sleeping bird]. The basic reference is the "rhythmic"like sequence on Cb4 (= Cv4) that ends with the discussed "bird"-like glyph. In Harris and Melka 31 it is shown that the /670/-related sources hark back to Metoro's "readings". 32 Sober scholars have doubted (even dismissed) the value of such "readings"for details, one should look at Alfred Métraux; Steven R. Fischer's Chapter 9, "Bishop Jaussen and Metoro Tau'a Ure", and Jacques B. M. Guy. 33 Although the present authors disapprove Metoro's translations in consonance with Métraux,Fischer,Guy,and other 28 For more on the topic, see MELKA, T. S., ALTMANN, G. Script Complexity: A Case Study. Specifically, as far as our own experience with the rongorongo inscriptions goes, it may be reported that various scribes spent time lavishing details on many complex glyph-forms; cf. e.g., the "Santiago Staff"; "Great St Petersburg Tablet"; "Aruku Kurenga Tablet"; "Tahua Tablet"; "Small Washington Tablet"; "Small Santiago Tablet"; "Keiti Tablet"; "Great Washington Tablet"; "London rei miro 9295" (= La). 29 cf. MELKA, T. S. On a "Kinetic"-like Sequence in rongorongo Tablet "Mamari", p. 62, Figure 3  scholars, Fischer's short insertion "[…] they yield perhaps at best only occasionally correct sign 'identifications'", 34 leads us to critically assess the assigned value of /670/. The "sleeping bird" by extension was allegorically associated with slumber, waning, demise, and death. Reprising Barthel, the Slovak scholar Viktor Krupa posited that /670/ "refers […] not only to sleeping but also to other related states or processes, i.e. dying, lying down, falling down, etc.". 35 Harris and Melka performed a complex analysis of glyphs /670/ and /700/ (plus variants) in several environments, forwarding eventually the hypothesis that the Cb4 (= Cv4)-sequence might encode a magical charm formula, or the section of a war song. 36 The said analysis was based on structural, statistical, and the available linguistic and ethnographic data; the weight of the cumulative evidence pointed at such direction(s).
The occurrence of the "L-T" glyph offers an intriguing frame to test again the hypothesis. If the remaining piece of wood was part of the handle / shaft of a hand-weapon, of a throwing projectile, or a ritual-based tool, 37 it would make sense for a pre-missionary Rapanui macho to etch a martial accessory with the glyph that symbolized "death" / "knocked out". Charged with mana, the glyph could act as a magical amulet under determined circumstances. 38 The ritualistic 34 FISCHER, S. R. Rongorongo: The Easter Island Script, History, Traditions, Texts, p. 53; Earlier, ROUTLEDGE, K. (Mrs. SCORESBY ROUTLEDGE), The Mystery of Easter Island, p. 253, expressed a similar concern along these lines, "The names which Bishop's informant [= Metoro (i.e., Melchor) Tau'a Ure; our note] assigned to some five hundred figures may or may not be accurate, but whether the native or anyone else could have stated what the signs conveyed is another matter"; and on the same topic, BARTHEL, T. S. Pre-contact Writing in Oceania, p. 1181, states, "[...] the Metoro songs are not the actual key [to decipherment; our note] but the raw material for the interpretation of a certain percentage of the RR signs". Whatever value "Metoro songs / chants" may have (or not) for the present-day researcher we cannot rub out the fact that future pieces of evidence may be of decisive importance for their re-assessment. 35 Pâques,p. 299, suggesting that "mini-texts" in the RR corpus might deal with "magic formulas", among other things; FISCHER, S. R. Rongorongo: The Easter Island Script, History, Traditions, Texts, pp. 315-317. The inserted terms "determined circumstances" should not be taken here as "large-scale conflicts" or function of the "L-T fragment" remains a valid option, if we reflect, for instance, on Andy Mills's lines, "Weaponry permeated a wide range of cultural contexts in Polynesia, and performed a multitude of roles. The non-combative contexts of weapon use in historical Polynesia amounted to an equal or greater role than actual combat; so it would be an inaccurate representation to blankly [and completely; our note] view them as tools for killing". 39 On the purely practical sidewhether the "L-T" original artifact had ceremonial 40 or utilitarian functions -, the embedded power aimed at boosting the fighting skills as well as the bravery of the unknown ancient owner. Yet, one should not get the impression that rongorongo signs conveyed exclusively practices related to magic (of the sympathetic kind or not); that reminds us of Ignace J. Gelb's description of RR boards as "[...] a series of pictorial representations concocted for magical purposes". 41 Research records show that the script consists of other additional text categories and sub-categories. 42 "pitched battles", rather than as "casual and violent encounters" or "ambush situations". ROUTLEDGE, K. (Mrs. SCORESBY ROUTLEDGE). The Mystery of Easter Island, p. 224, comments upon the internecine fights / battles in the following terms, "The warfare consisted largely of spasmodic and isolated raids; an aggrieved person gathered together his neighbours and descended on the offenders". Another description of the erstwhile "battles" is found in BROWN, J. M. The Riddle of the Pacific, p. 215, "When the battle did occur it was what we would call a riot or a scrimmage; there was neither order nor tactics in it. Every warrior hit where he could and killed as many as he had opportunity to kill". 39  Consider for now that entwining the practice of writing with magical empowerment is no privilege of a single culture. The topic is treated by many authors covering various real-world scribal traditions, and readers wishing to come to grips with it may refer e.g., to Quibell;Schott;Tambiah;Drogin;and Strubbe. 43 We should also admit that deciphering and interpretative matters are subject on many grounds to regular contesting in the rongorongo studies. To see if the hypothesis regarding the "L-T" artifact sums up to something beyond a tentative suggestion, we shall have to systematically analyze and capture the interplay between glyphs of the /600/-series and their environments in the extant corpus. The possible emergence of any other genuine artifact displaying RR glyphs of the /664/-and /674/-type, plus other contiguous glyphs, will be even better for clearing any speculative nonsense and sticking to the facts (v. supra).

Hypotheses
Given a number of tangible premises, hypotheses are expected regarding the artifact comprising the individually distinct "L-T" glyph. Before ascribing them, it may be suspected that the fragment was removed in order to preserve the glyph, while the rest of the object was perhaps reused for some other purpose or destroyed.
At this point we wish to underscore (that) the English-based terminology intent on describing or paralleling the indigenous Rapanui weapons may often fall short. We are aware of the "reductive discursive impact of the terms [...]" 44 as they may devaluate the "[...] Polynesian weapons [and their ingrained mana force; our note] through false-neutral nomenclature". 45 Yet, despite the lack of truly comparable matches, such terminology is offered for practical and orientating reasons. 46 (1) In view of the size (approximately 3.7 cm by 3.4 cm by 2.5 cm in maximum dimensions) and the cylindrical-like shape (Fig. 1) cognitive abilities link the "L-T fragment" with the shaft / handle of some sort of club, hand weapon, or similar implement. The range and the width of the "L-T fragment" appear, however, too small to have been part of a staff or club per se (such as an ua staff or a paoa club 47 for use at close quarters), although perhaps it could have been the end of a long and thin staff. The initial assessment is that the "L-T Fragment" is the remains of a handle that was once attached to some sort of obsidian spear-point or knife blade 48 (see e.g., Figs. 3 and 4). We think of the mata'a / matā 49 (the broad-faced stemmed obsidian "blade"; Figs. 5 and 6) here, but it could also have been attached to some other 47 On the short-handled clubs called paoa, see e.g., BROWN, J. M. History, Introduction: A Phonetic Note, p. 367, discusses the insertion of the term "mataa (= matā)" versus "mata'a". Since the relatable literature has constantly delved into them in one form or another, we make use of either in this study, admitting in the end they refer to the same class of pre-missionary artifacts / multifarious contexts. FUENTES, J. Diccionario y Gramática de la Lengua de la Isla de Pascua. Pascuense-Castellano, Castellano-Pascuense. Dictionary & Grammar of the Easter Island Language. Pascuense-English, English-Pascuense, p. 785, offers the following definition of the term: "matá n. obsidian / vitreous lava / the spear heads made from this stone". type of blade. Comments on "kakau" (der Wurfspeer = launching spear / javelin) and "vero" (der Spieß = lance) are also included in subsection c) "Waffen" (Weapons) [Chapter 15, Ethnographica, Interpretation] of Barthel.
Deriving from Metoro's chants, glyph /86/ would denote an obsidian-tipped stick. 50 It is clear that this glyph strikes an iconic resemblance with the weapon in question; now, if we should trust forthrightly Metoro for all his readings this is altogether another issue (v. supra).
Yet, the pre-contact to missionary era internecine feuding and sporadic skirmishes (before 1722 to circa 1864early 1870s, respectively), together with obsidian-based tools of warlike and other uses, 51 are frequently mentioned in the literature. 52 Similarly, the obsidian, as an important local commodity, appears in a short recitation related to kai-kai string figures. 53 Although the authenticity of its pre-1864 status is uncertain, 54 it shows the concern of the natives toward the artifact / material, or it may hint at fossilized records in their collective memory. The recitation is reproduced below in its original form, Rapanui and German; 55 plus the English version rendered by the present authors.

Rapanui
German English  Figure 10; In order to be technically rigorous, we focus at this point on the article of Lipo,Hunt,et al. 58 Their useful conclusions that "[…] mata'a do not appear to be related to systemic warfare where performance as lethal weapons would be paramount", and that "[…] mata'a had more than one function is not surprising" give food for thought. An important aspect of their study, in our opinion, is that they apparently considered only the broad-faced stemmed obsidian blades, which have been found very abundantly on Easter Island. Otherwise, rarer forms of other obsidian-tipped weapons, such as hafted true points ("spear points" attached to handles / shafts) 59 and knives (= ka'i, a sharpened stone knife) 60  13a, b, c -, 61 were not documented for analysis. (At this juncture, since we strongly suspect that the "Lutz-Terasaki fragment" was part of a handle or shaft for an obsidian-tipped or bladed implement, it might be worth including an illustration of a non-lithic spear point [made of bone]; see Figs. 14a and 14b. The little material that remains of the "Lutz-Terasaki fragment" is, we estimate, thicker than the "missing" shaft for this bone spear point. We believe the discussed artifact is a fine and rare examplefine because of the overall craftsmanship, and rare because bone spear tips did not easily survive, unlike obsidian stone artifacts.) 62 Returning to the course of lithic artifacts: the more pre-missionary Rapanui pieces we look into, we come to realize that mata'a / matā (broad-stemmed obsidian blades) are typically much "cruder" than the obsidian projectile head having a spear point-like shape or the obsidian tool ( Unsurprisingly, that perceived emotionality may have represented a vector for mood swings, translated in due course into quarrels and other antagonizing episodes. It is also admitted that the different types of modern knives are mostly designed either as eating utensils or kitchen utensils; however, they can be used as harmful weapons even if they were not intended as such; in like manner, as tempers fray, baseball or cricket bats designed primarily for sporting and recreational activities can be used as improvised impact weapons (see, in this respect, Paul Bahn's, Robin Torrence's, and J. M. Ramírez Aliaga's comparable remarks). 65 More to the point, genuine injuries during such fighting have been documented via studies of the skulls and skeletons of Rapanui, including in some cases injuries caused by obsidian-tipped weapons as evidenced by fragments of obsidian that remained embedded in the surrounding bone. 66 In a culture little beyond the Neolithic, the functional status of the "L-T" artifact may be seen in two ways: as a mêlée weapon made use of (1) in real scuffles, or employed (2) in ritual and celebratory events. Furthermore, on a pan-Oceanic note, the widespread presence of arrays of weaponry or of "military" footprints are not unprecedented; see  Fig. 56b; OWSLEY, D. W., BARCA, K. G., SIMON, V. E., GILL, G. W. Evidence for Injuries and Violent Death. We think that KAVANAGH, C., in Did Easter Island Culture Collapse? The Answer Is Not Simple, is quite reflective of how the controversy of the mata'a (fit for "stabbing" and "piercing") versus the mata'a (poor for "stabbing" and "piercing") may be treated, "The crucial point is that such debates continue, and can almost never be settled by a single study or analysis of a single type of artefact". 67  If we care to expand a little, visitors, ethnologists, and archeologists have reported on the use of toki (mainly heavy picks, hammerheads, and adzes) as traditional carving and scraping instruments, knapped from hard local lavas (see Thomson;Routledge;Skottsberg;Brown;Métraux;McCoy;Bollt,Clark,et al.;Lelièvre,Pothier,et al.;Hicks,Hamilton,et al.;plus Figs. 8,9,10a,10b,and 11a,11b). 68  That the "L-T fragment" was once part of a handle of an obsidian-tipped weapon used in combat is based, thus far, on the grounds of the probable wood species, 72 its cylindrical-like shape, plus the patina commensurate with the old age. 73 A valid argument with further impact on this hypothesis is the occurrence of the "bird"-/ "human"-like glyph. In this sense, the relationship glyph (= applied symbol) ↔ artifact (= context) must have been cogent and non-arbitrary. Rudolf Arnheim draws attention to the fact that "[…] the appearance of any element depends on its place and function in an overall pattern". 74 As matrixglyph /670/ (and variants thereof) seems to respond in certain contexts to the notions of "demise", "waning" / "lowering", "slumber", and hence, "death", the original Rapanui owner (or a person with some scribal knowledge) etched the glyph on the handle / shaft. In this case, we have to assume the time-gap between the manufacturing of the handle and etching was almost coincident, or minor at least. Since magic had a powerful hold on pre-missionary life, the glyph was intent on increasing the effects of the weapon: its power to inflict harm on any target would be shown most fully.
(2) Other competing approaches are possible, such as relating the glyph / artifact to the name of the original owner. Glyph(s) /664/ , /674/ , and /V460.77/ 75 (?) -morphologically quite similar to that of the "L-T fragment" occur in texts that very likely encode lists of personal names in different formats and time divisions (→ Ia  Ta  Gv). The human practice of tagging artifacts (for identification, ownership, rank) is recognized, and the high-or low-status individual of the "L-T" relic would have been no exception.
Monument Destruction, and the 'Huri Moai' Phase in Rapa Nui (Easter Island) Culture History, p. 10. 72 It may be Thespesia populnea / Pacific rosewood / mako'i, as discussed in Part I of our article. 73 Considering the object was previously owned by the Bernhard Lutz Family (Switzerland) and also by the New York dealer, collector, and connoisseur George Terasaki, the "L-T fragment" may find (as such) a fitting reflection in the words of PATERSON, R. K. Collecting "Tribal Art" -Sacred or Secular?, p. 305, "The [non-Western art; our note] market usually excludes contemporary material and places a premium on objects that show signs of traditional use or age". 74 ARNHEIM, R. Art and Visual Perception: A Psychology of the Creative Eye, p. 5. 75 This suggested code-number is found in BARTHEL, T. S. Grundlagen zur Entzifferung der Osterinselschrift. (Abhandlungen aus dem Gebiet der Auslandskunde 64, Reihe B), p. 59.
One "little" concern is that texts Ia  Ta  Gv include additional glyphs in their standard onomastic sequences, whereas the "L-T" glyph is totally disjointed (= non-contiguous). Hapax phenomena, as we know, are difficult to study scientifically simply because there are no fully reliable and secure grounds to allocate and replicate the "lone" event. In principle, the problem tends to become clearer if we tackle rongorongo in cryptological terms: in those of text encryption and decryption. As Claude E. Shannon noted in one of his seminal articles, 76 there is an inherent difficulty with (very) short ciphers, one that is independent of the solution method or language model used. A mathematical measure of the decipherment uncertainty was suggested by Shannon: equivocation, in his choice of words; nowadays known as entropy. Expanding further the topic, Sujith Ravi and Kevin Knight offer a plain heuristic case: given a short cipher like XYYX, we can never be sure if the answer is peep, noon, anna, etc. 77 The difficulties are easily imagined with discrete symbols or very short strings of an unidentified script, especially if they are of unknown provenance and devoid of a context. Think of it another way: let us assume a pair of capital letters are found in the far future on a wrinkled scrap of paper and dated to the beginning of the twenty-first century: ‹C.R.›. As these characters fit in the category of random information, they could necessarily be the equal representation of sundry words or even phrase-sets, and could transcribe English, French, Swedish, Welsh, Latin, Portuguese, German, Finnish [...]. Even if the search parameters are narrowed, → the capital letters transcribe Latin, they could be anything, from Carolus Rex [King Charles]; Civis Romanus [a Roman Citizen]; to Custos Rotulorum [Keeper of the Rolls / Records]to mention a few possible keys.
Besides, we should wait until we get further data on glyph from other contexts (existent or to be discovered; v. supra). Since the pre-missionary rongorongo scribes resorted as a matter of course to allegories and metaphors and encoded them in various glyphs, we could still take refuge in doubt when it comes to a precise decipherment. 78 To demonstrate the point with a heuristic 76 SHANNON, C. E. Communication Theory of Secrecy Systems. 77 RAVI, S., KNIGHT,p. 818. Specifically, regarding the key equivocation observed (bits) versus cipher length (English letters = 1-gram, 2-gram, and 3-gram); see ibid.
Attacking Decipherment Problems Optimally with p. 818,Figures 4,5,and 6. 78 On re-inspection, we wish to point out that whether on part of committed and versatile scholars or serious aficionados, decipherments as such (combined with the inherent challenge and "detective appeal") have been too "juicy" to resist; cf. example from English: in popular conversation, one usually says "obvious" or "clear"; in academic speech, one may opt for "self-evident"; and in a metaphorical setting, a person may choose "as the sun at noonday". If the metaphor "as the sun at noonday" standing for "obvious" or "clear" is "arbitrarily" encoded via the discrete Wingdings symbol 105 "", a modern mind might not exactly pin down "[...] the sun at noonday". Otherwise, based on a nearly intrinsic relationship with the image, 79 we may experience and better perceive a "shining sun" at noon and some of its metaphorical connotations 80 by the Wingdings iconic-like sign 82 → "". 81 (3) If, on the other hand, the time-gap between the manufacturing of the artifact and its etching is more-than-minor or considerable, it would be difficult to sustain hypothesis No. 1. In this vein, anyone in the pre-1864 period could have added the inscription. The advantages gained by doing so may have paralleled or outweighed the importance of the artifact. A number of them follow: (a) add some extrinsic value to the current object; (b) the person behind it applied his aesthetic vision or tested his carving skills; (c) or, simply tagged it for practical reasons, e.g., as part of an appellation; affiliation to a descent group; identity mark; marking a weapon that had been used to kill someone in the past, etc.
Based on the examination of the evidence, the most reasonable hypothesis in our opinion is No. 1: the surviving "L-T fragment" has the expected size for a handle of some sort of knife or other obsidian-pointed weapon or object, or perhaps, it could have been the end of a long and thin staff.

Conclusions
 Having the right kind of data in any corpus-based study allows deductions to take a turn towards plausibility, and later probability, thence towards certainty. 82 This consideration notwithstanding, the genuine rongorongo corpus, while theoretically and practically insufficient, is what scholarship has available for analysis. Any other emerging contextshort or relatively long -, bearing new, authenticated RR glyphs should be attached with importance and put to crosschecking. The "L-T fragment" must be considered in this context.
 By all the more obvious signs, the "L-T fragment" and its correlated glyph ( Fig. 1) is an authentic cultural piece dating back to the pre-missionary era (that is, pre-1864). 83 The various lines of investigation (wood species / patina / ethnographic and linguistic sources / structural and combinatory glyphic analyses) across this two-part article converge on this. As far as we are concerned, within this context, the ultimate scientific "payout" is the reconstruction and documentation of an indigenous relic.
 For the sake of clarity, we make one important observation at this time. We contend that the "Lutz-Terasaki fragment" is a genuine product of premissionary Rapa Nui. However, the "Lutz-Terasaki fragment" does not fit the definition, as set forth by S. R. Fischer and subsequently accepted by many researchers of rongorongo, of an inscription to be included in the primary canonical rongorongo corpus. As already noted, Fischer defines a rongorongo "inscription" as "a sequence of two or more glyphs that fulfil a communicatory function". 84 With only an isolated glyph, the "Lutz-Terasaki fragment" does not meet this requirement. Yet, we suggest that in the future, the "Lutz-Terasaki fragment" and its glyph should be included in an inventory and secondary 82 cf. TAYLOR, C. What is Corpus Linguistics? What the Data Says. 83 Prior to the arrival of the missionary Joseph-Eugène Eyraud to the island in 1864; see footnote 9, above. 84 FISCHER, S. R. Rongorongo: The Easter Island Script, History, Traditions, Texts, p. ix; cf. also p. 155, footnote 82 in MELKA, T. S., SCHOCH, R. M. The Quest for Information Retrieval: An Inscribed Relic from Ancient Rapa Nui (Easter Island), Part I. A similar perspective (although concerning other non-identified scripts) is found in FERRARA, S., From Icon to Sign: Local Iconography and the Birth of the Cretan Hieroglyphic Script, p. 4 (citing GODART, L., OLIVIER, J-P., Recueil des Inscriptions en Linéaire A), "As convention dictates, an inscription is defined as the association of at least two, or more, consecutive signs arranged in a coherent sequence, with a consistent orientation (GORILA 3 )". corpus or sub-corpus of pre-missionary artifacts bearing single rongorongo glyphs. Ultimately, we believe, the rongorongo corpus requires dispassionate and measured (i.e., deliberate, restrained, non-emotional, objective, and carefully considered) scholarly analyses if progress is to be made in rongorongo studies. Such analyses should address, among others, the artifact known as the "Lutz-Terasaki fragment" and its glyph.
 The suggested hypothesis, that the "L-T fragment" once was an integral part of a handle of some sort of knife or other obsidian-pointed weapon, with the "bird"-/ "human"-like glyph corresponding to warlike / ritualistic premises, seems to form specific connections with the current multi-layered data. In this sense, it is refreshing to survey Kononenko,Stevenson,et al. 85 ; the authors, after analyzing the many potential uses of matā (= mata'a) from cave deposits (on the southern coast of Rapa Nui), hypothesize that "[...] the matā may have been initially devised for a specific task, but once the package of a strong edge, a precision grip, and a protective handhold was created, the tool form proliferated and was extended to many other activities. Eventually, creating a handle on obsidian tools became the cultural norm for many different tasks. Furthermore, the addition of a wooden handle might have become extended because it created a space that could be decorated and used for communicating cultural affiliation and/or ownership".
Yet, as striking as the hypotheses of TSM and RMS and Kononenko,Stevenson,et al. 86 are, it does not necessarily follow that we have fully hit the bull's eye. It is acknowledged that other scenarios are possible, including the alternative hypotheses we have outlined previously, in the case of the "L-T fragment". What is of importance, however, is a sound methodology in elucidating "puzzling" artifacts and records, as pursued by past and present scholars.
 Close consideration must also be given to the fact that the scribal activity was not tightly restrained to tablets and staves. Providing the hypothesis on the warlike / ceremonial-like use of the discussed fragment borders on the truth, it may offer further evidence on the social extent and use of script, as reported by 85   The present authors recognize that the rongorongo script is still nondeciphered (in the sense implied by M. Pope and M. Coe). 88 However, depending on whom you listen to, syllabic and/or logographic values have been successfully assigned over various glyphs and passages, or complete tablet inscriptions have been translated. Given the characteristics of a "mysterious" phenomenon, rongorongo has the power to entice and attract the cautious, the self-confident, and the fanciful. As an "early script", 89 on the other hand, it has the power to trigger more solutions than the sober-minded scholarship can handle. Attempts at full decipherment over the decades have fizzled out, and there is reason to suggest that many of them will not succeed in the future. However, it is not that we are prejudiced to accept (or not) the phonetic decipherment of rongorongo or want to undercut the related efforts in some way; we simply advise the international aspirants to keep check with each other and see if they come to an agreement regarding their submissions.  89 The designation "early script" is out of convenience; essentially referring to a script as not fully "developed", rather than conceived and availed of at some "early" and "defective" stage along a timeline. Yet again, one has to consider the designation is potentially ambiguous since it may hint at some teleological classificatory scheme. 90 While not agreed on all points, the identification of the so-called "Lunar Calendar" on the "Mamari Tablet" suggests otherwise a general consensus among the serious RR researchers. However, there is no full assurance on the exact "reading" of this textual passage. Commenting on such identification made by BARTHEL, T. S. Grundlagen zur Entzifferung der Osterinselschrift. (Abhandlungen aus dem Gebiet der Auslandskunde 64, Reihe B) on the "Mamari Tablet" (the "Lunar Calendar" text), FISCHER, S. R. Preliminary Evidence for Cosmogonic Texts in Rapanui's Rongorongo Inscriptions, p. 304, says, "A phonetic statement of this brief "Mamari" passage has not been forthcoming in the intervening 39 years [→ 63 years to date; our note]"; see in addition, MELKA, T. S. in HARRIS, M., MELKA, T. S., The Rongorongo Script: On a Listed Sequence in the recto [verso; repaired] of Tablet 'Mamari', Part 1, p. 125, "An important achievement has been made nonetheless: the identification of a sequence of calendaric content describing a synodic month (see Barthel, 1958a, pp. 243-247;Guy, 1990), though so far there is no telling on how to read it conclusively". One has to imagine therefore the "phonetic readings" of rongorongo sequences / texts on which the scholarly consensus is more-than-negligible or inexistent.
 Despite having occasional detective-like tones, the effects and hypotheses originating in this study may have an impact on other rongorongo artifacts possibly resurfacing in the future. 91 Until that uplifting moment happens, discretion is in order.