This piece of wood, also known as Hector's piece of eight, Ragetti's wooden eye or simply the wooden eye, was was one of the sacred Nine Pieces of Eight belonging to the Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea. It was originally a small, square block of wood known to be in possession of Boris "Borya" Palachnik, who later gave it to Hector Barbossa. The Piece of Eight was mostly known to be kept in a safe place by Barbossa's crewman, Ragetti as the sailor's wooden eye, a replacement for his right eye that he lost in battle.
History[]
Early use[]
The earliest known use of this piece of wood was as a Pirate Lord's sacred "Piece of Eight" —the object each one used in the past to bind the sea goddess Calypso and swear their allegiance to the Pirate's Code. Passed down through the generations of the Pirate Lords of the Brethren Court, this Piece of Eight was designated to the Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea, who would hold this item close at all times as it provided entry to the Court.[4]
Borya Palachnik's Piece of Eight[]
- "'Tis true, I swear. I could hardly believe it meself. Oh, and he gave me this, said it was his most precious token. His mind must be addled, is all I can say."
- ―Hector Barbossa
By the time Boris "Borya" Palachnik became the Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea, this Piece of Eight was a small, square block of wood, about an inch and a half on the side. When Davy Jones identified Borya as the leader of the rogue pirates who violated the Code of the Pirate Brethren, Borya and his whole crew were imprisoned by the Brethren and sentenced to hang, notably for destroying the Cobra, the pirate ship of his friend Hector Barbossa. Barbossa visited Borya in a prison, where Borya apologized for his actions and even gave Barbossa his most precious token, the block of wood, thus making Barbossa the next Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea. However, Barbossa didn't know the meaning of the Piece of Eight at that time.[2]
Hector Barbossa's Piece of Eight[]
A square block of wood[]
- "You need to be careful of that little token. Don't lose it. Show it to Captain Teague as soon as you can. He'll tell you what it is."
"You say this is important? Looks like junk."
"It is important, Hector. Unless I'm much mistaken, that is one of the Nine Pieces of Eight." - ―Jack Sparrow and Hector Barbossa
When Hector Barbossa visited Borya in a prison, Borya gave Barbossa his most precious token, a small, square block of wood, about an inch and a half on the side. Curiosity flared in Hector's eyes when Jack Sparrow told him to show it to Edward Teague, who would explain its importance. However, Barbossa didn't know it at the time, but the little bit of wood was one of the nine Pieces of Eight, thus making Barbossa the next Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea.[2]
The exact circumstances in which Barbossa became a Pirate Lord are unknown, but it is known that he gave his Piece of Eight to Ragetti for safekeeping in his possession wherever he went. Through unknown circumstances, Barbossa lost contact with Ragetti, though they were reunited several years later when Barbossa served as First Mate on the Black Pearl under Captain Jack Sparrow.[5] Some time after leading the mutiny against Jack, Barbossa learned the meaning of the Piece of Eight and proclaimed himself the new Pirate Lord of the Caspian Sea.[4]
Ragetti's eye[]
Ragetti wearing the bit of wood as a wooden replacement to his right eye.
The Piece of Eight was mostly known to be kept in a safe place by Hector Barbossa's crewman, Ragetti, and remained in the sailor's possession wherever he went. At some point in the ten-year quest undertaken by Barbossa's cursed crew of the Black Pearl to return the scattered pieces of Aztec gold from the cursed treasure of Cortés to Isla de Muerta, it became a wooden replacement for a right eye he lost in battle.[7] When they talk about lifting the curse, Pintel told Ragetti they'd be rich men and could buy an eye made of glass, to which the latter responded that the wooden replacement "splinters 'somefink' terrible."[5]
Ragetti's wooden eye would occasionally pop out by anything that knocked him in the back of his head. During the ship battle between the Black Pearl and the Interceptor, a fork struck the wooden eye when Jack Sparrow's motley crew kept firing random objects at the Pearl, after which Pintel pulled it out and examined the projectile. Near the end of the battle at Isla de Muerta that followed, where it popped out in the middle of the fight. Ragetti instantly panicked and started chasing after the eye all the way until the pirates' curse was lifted, after which Ragetti put the eye back on as he was arrested by the British Royal Navy.[5]
The wooden eye rolling over the charts.
After escaping from the Port Royal prison, Ragetti continued wearing the wooden eye in further adventures aboard the Black Pearl, including Jack Sparrow's search for the Dead Man's Chest and the rescue of Sparrow and the Pearl from Davy Jones' Locker. Occasionally, the wooden eye would be taken by "Jack" the Monkey, who Ragetti had to chase all over the Pearl.[6] As Sparrow examined the Map to the Land of the Dead, he noticed the eye as it rolled back and forth on top of the charts, idly playing with the rings of the charts as he deciphered the map's cryptic message: "Up is down."[8] At one point, Barbossa took the wooden eye, put it into his mouth then back out, and then put it into Ragetti's empty eye socket so that it would stay. Sparrow once referred to Ragetti as "[Pintel's] friend with the wooden eye" while aboard the Endeavour with Lord Cutler Beckett.[3]
Fourth Brethren Court and destruction[]
- "Master Ragetti, if you will."
"I kept it safe for you, just like you said when you gave it to me."
"Aye, you have. But now I need it back." - ―Hector Barbossa and Ragetti
As the nine Pirate Lords convened in the Fourth Brethren Court meeting, it was preferred by Hector Barbossa that every Lord had to present their Piece of Eight, dropping them into a scarf-lined bowl held by Ragetti. As the Pieces of Eight clattered into Ragetti's bowl, Barbossa held out his hand to Ragetti himself, requesting his piece back. The crewman hesitated, saying he kept the eye safe for his captain. Barbossa leaned over and gave Ragetti a slap on the back of his head, and Ragetti's wooden eye popped out into Barbossa's outstretched hand.[8] The Pirate Lord then dropped his Piece of Eight into the bowl.[3]
Hector Barbossa telling Ragetti that he needs his Piece of Eight back.
Later, as the parley ended, Barbossa intended to use the Pieces of Eight to perform the incantation to free Calypso from the Brethren's spell that bound her, due to his bargain with the goddess's human form Tia Dalma.[8] Even though the Pirate Lords had not agreed to it, Barbossa had collected their Pieces of Eight after the meeting, so now he could do it himself. Adding Jack Sparrow's trinket and Elizabeth Swann's Jade Captain's Knot to the other pieces in the scarf-lined bowl Rageti held, all nine pieces were brought together for the incantation. The bowl suddenly burst into flames, and all that was left of the Pieces of Eight, including Barbossa's, were decaying bits of ashes and metal.[3]
Meanwhile, Ragetti pulled out an eye patch and slipped it on as another replacement for his right eye. He wore it through the Fourth Court, the battle of Calypso's maelstrom, and Barbossa leaving Sparrow behind aboard the Black Pearl. After leaving Jack behind, Ragetti was seen carving out a new wooden eye all to himself.[3]
Behind the scenes[]
- Ragetti's wooden eye first appeared in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,[5] though its importance as one of the Nine Pieces of Eight wasn't revealed until At World's End.[3]
- The name "Ragetti's wooden eye" appeared in the several media, notably Dead Man's Chest production notes,[9] the At World's End junior novelization,[8] and Bring Me That Horizon: The Making of Pirates of the Caribbean.[10] "Hector's piece of eight" was named in the "Inside the Brethren Court" special feature in the At World's End DVD release.[4]
- For The Curse of the Black Pearl, a lot of work went into designing the individual characters so that they are recognizable in both live action pirates and as skeletons. Visual Effects Supervisor John Knoll brought up Ragetti having a wooden eye as one of several examples.[11] For Dead Man's Chest, key makeup designer Ve Neill and key hairstylist Martin Samuel's extensive work would contribute greatly to the film's overall look and atmosphere, with Ragetti's wooden eye having almost become a character unto itself. Actor Mackenzie Crook had to wear two contact lenses for this effect, sandwiched one on top of the other. Crook admitted, "It's uncomfortable, but not painful. And it helps the character, because without it, I'm just any other pirate." Coincidentally, in real life, Crook had never worn contacts, "so this is into the deep end."[9]
Appearances[]
- The Price of Freedom
- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Legend of Jack Sparrow
- Legend of the Aztec Idol!
- The Buccaneer's Heart! (Non-canonical appearance)
- Chain Reaction!
- Breakout!
- The Escape of Pintel and Ragetti!
- Pearly Gaze!
- The Sleeping Island!
- Pirates of the Caribbean Trading Card Game
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (junior novelization)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (Penguin Readers)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (video game)
- The Haunting of Jack Sparrow!
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (junior novelization) (First identified as Ragetti's wooden eye)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (video game)
- Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (comic)
- The Challenge!
- The Dragon Tile!
- LEGO Pirates of the Caribbean: The Video Game (Non-canonical appearance)
- VISA commercial spot (Non-canonical appearance)
- M&M's commercial spot (Non-canonical appearance)
Sources[]
- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Visual Guide
- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide
- Bring Me That Horizon: The Making of Pirates of the Caribbean
- Inside the Brethren Court (First identified as Hector's piece of eight)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ This Piece of Eight had to be made by the time the First Brethren Court convened.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Price of Freedom
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End "Inside the Brethren Court" featurette
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
- ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean: The Complete Visual Guide
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (junior novelization)
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 POTC2 Presskit
- ↑ Bring Me That Horizon: The Making of Pirates of the Caribbean, p. 149
- ↑ Pirates of the Caribbean production notes, accessed Dec 9, 2006