A ''flèche faîtière'' is a

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

term that describes a carved rooftop spear,

spire A spire is a tall, slender, pointed structure on top of a roof of a building or tower, especially at the summit of church steeples. A spire may have a square, circular, or polygonal plan, with a roughly conical or pyramidal shape. Spire ...

finial A finial () or hip-knob is an element marking the top or end of some object, often formed to be a decorative feature. In architecture, it is a small decorative device, employed to emphasize the Apex (geometry), apex of a dome, spire, tower, roo ...

that adorns houses of

Melanesians Melanesians are the predominant and Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous inhabitants of Melanesia, in an area stretching from New Guinea to the Fiji Islands. Most speak one of the many languages of the Austronesian languages, Austronesian l ...

New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...

(the ''

Kanak The Kanaks ( French spelling until 1984: Canaque) are the indigenous Melanesian inhabitants of New Caledonia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southwest Pacific. Kanak peoples traditionally speak diverse Austronesian languages that ...

''), particularly those of their chiefs. The ceremonial carving is the home of ancestral spirits and is characterized by three major components. The ancestor is symbolized by a flat, crowned face in the centre of the spear. The ancestor's voice is symbolized by a long, rounded pole that is run through by

conch shell Conch ( , , ) is a common name of a number of different medium-to-large-sized sea snails. Conch shells typically have a high spire and a noticeable siphonal canal (in other words, the shell comes to a noticeable point on both ends). Conchs ...

s. The symbolic connection of the clan, through the chief, is a base, which is planted into the case's central pole. Sharply pointed wood pieces fan out from either end of the central area, symbolically preventing bad spirits from being able to reach the ancestor. It evokes, beyond a particular ancestor, the community of ancestors. The flèche faîtière was depicted on a 2007 New Caledonian stamp.

Etymology

''Flèche'' is a general architectural term for "spire". It is used to define a small but tall post that is fixed at the crossing of the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and

transepts A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") churches, in particular within the Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architectu ...

cathedrals A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

and large churches. ''Flèche faîtière'' means "carved roof top spear", which adorns the ''grande case'' or the "Great Hut" of the Chief of a Kanak clan.

Symbolism

The ' is wood sculpture that represents the spirit of Kanak culture, which resembles a small totem pole. As it represented the power of the clan Chiefs of Kanaks over their subjects, it was adopted as part of the flag of the Kanaks by the organization leading the independent movement in New Caledonia. The Grand Huts also known as ' (chief's hut) are decorated with a ' as a filial, representing the ancestral spirits, symbolic of transition between the world of the dead and the world of the living. The arrow or the spear normally has a needle at the end to insert threaded shells from bottom to top; one of the shells contains arrangements to ensure protection of the house and the country. During wars enemies attacked this symbolic finial. After the death of a Kanak chief, over whose Great House the ' is fixed, it is removed and his family takes it to their home. Though it was allowed to be used again as a sign of respect, it is normally kept at burial grounds of noted citizens or at the mounds of abandoned grand houses.

Flag

The ''flèche faîtière'' also adorns the official flag of the Kanak people. As it represented the power of the Chiefs over their subjects, it was adopted as part of the flag of the Kanaks by the organization leading the independent movement in New Caledonia. The flag of Kanaky is set in three colours namely, green for earth and flora, red for blood and sacrifice of people and blue signifying sea and sky. The solar disk with the hut inscribed, with the ridge pole in black, which is the symbolic ''flèche faîtière'', is set in the middle of the flag. The flag representing the indigenous movement of the Kanak people was endorsed by the territorial congress to be flown alongside the national

flag of France The national flag of France () is a Tricolour (flag), tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured blue (Flag terminology#Description of standard flag parts and terms, hoist side), white, and red. The design was adopted after the French Rev ...

, and the Prime Minister of France was set to hoist the Kanak flag during his visit to New Caledonia in July 2010. The indigenous Kanak flag and the French tricolour were hoisted above the high commission in

Nouméa Nouméa () is the capital and largest city of the French Sui generis collectivity, special collectivity of New Caledonia and is also the largest Francophone city in Oceania. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main i ...

, the capital of New Caledonia. It is one of the few countries to have two national flags. However, there is a strong move now to evolve a new flag for New Caledonia, which would represent elements of the "Tricolor and the Kanak flags as a common destiny".

Notable examples

The Mwa Ka is located in a landscaped square opposite the Musée de Nouvelle-Calédonie and has a 12-metre pole, topped with ''flèche faîtière''; its carvings represent the eight customary regions of New Caledonia. The

Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre The Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre (), on the narrow Tinu Peninsula, approximately northeast of the historic centre of Nouméa, the capital of New Caledonia, celebrates the vernacular Kanak people, Kanak culture, the indigenous culture of Ne ...

has numerous huts with ''flèche faîtière''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fleche Faitiere Kanak culture Religious symbols

Etymology

Symbolism

Flag

Notable examples

See also

References