Name/Title
Polynesian barkclothEntry/Object ID
NK8896.P6.K66Description
The Polynesian islands lie in an equilateral triangle in the vast expanse of the Pacific. The inhabitants were famed for their barkcloth, or tapa, which had aroused the admiration of the early European travelers. The main source of material is the paper mulberry tree, which is of Asian origin and was introduced into the Pacific by the ancestors of the Polynesians. Tapa was put to a wide variety of uses, ranging from ordinary daily clothing to elaborately ornamented ceremonial pieces. Although the manufacture and decoration of barkcloth in Polynesia had a number of common elements, there were differences between the work in central and northern Polynesia and that in the islands in the west.Collection
Carol Westfall CollectionLexicon
Search Terms
bark painting, carol westfall collection, tapa, tapa--polynesiaBook Details
Author
Simon KooijmanPublisher
Shire PublicationsDate Published
1988Call No.
NK8896.P6.K66ISBN
852639430, 9780852639436LCCN
89220072Notes
Length: 64