Nikhil Agrawal

Content Area 9
Nan Modal
Identification
Pohnpei, Micronesia
Saudeleur Dynasty. c. 700-1600 AD
Basalt boulders and prismatic columns
Information
Megalithic ceremonial complex
Built on the eastern shore of Pohnpei
during the Saudeleur dynasty
built using canals and artificial islets
made of large stones filling submerged coral reefs
At its peak, there were over 90 of these islets and possibly home to 1,000 people
It is the earliest example of centralized power in the Pacific
It is the only ancient city built on top of a coral reef
Moai on platform (ahu)
Identification
Rapa Nui (Easter Island)
c. 1100-1600 AD
Volcanic tuff figures on basalt base
Information
The Moai are some of the oldest and largest artworks
of the Pacific region
Stand as high as 40 feet in some cases and weighing up
to 100 tons
Prominent foreheads, large bread notes
White coral placed in the eyes
Sit on a temple platform (ahu)
Made primarily of soft volcanic tuff
Some examples using red scoria (used for the scoriaor red topknot seen
on some examples above), and basalt or trachyte.
The moai were probably carved to commemorate important ancestors
Personalities deified after death
Over a few hundred years the inhabitants of this remote island quarried, carved,
and erected around 900 statues
Mostly male
backs to the sea, keeping watch over the island

Nikhil Agrawal
'Ahu 'ula (feather cape)
Identification
Hawaiian
Late 18th century AD
Feathers and fiber
Information
Hawaiian society was the most highly stratified in the Pacific
region
Most of the art forms visualized and reinforced this
hierarchy in order to strengthen social stability
This elaborate feather cape would have been worn by a high-ranking
man in Hawaiian culture
The rarity of the feathers used in this cloak reflect his high status
Red and yellow feathers were the most prized
Some birds yielded only six or seven feathers, so many birds were
required to make a cloak
Sometimes used up to 500,000 feathers for a full length
robe
Male nobility wore feather cloaks and capes for ceremonies and battle
Semi-circular cape is considered a later development from the trapezoidal shape
Traded with the European settlers
Staff God
Identification
Rarotonga, Cook Islands, central Polynesia
Late 18th to early 19th century AD.
Wood, tapa, fiber, and feathers
Information
The specific function and identity of staff gods are
unknown
some scholars theorize that they represent the
creator god
The staff god is a compelling blend of male and female elements.
The wooden core was carved by a male artist
The barkcloth was traditionally made by women,
Protected the ancestral power ('mana) of the deity as well as
contained it within its layers
The upper part of the staff consists of a carved head above smaller carved figures
The lower end is a carved phallus

Female Deity

Nikhil Agrawal

Identification
Nukuoro, Micronesia
c. 18th to 19th century AD.
Wood
Information
monumental sculpture (over seven feet tall)
From Nukuoro of the Caroline Islands
Depicts the goddess Ko Kawe
Communicates serenity and power
Structure
Ovoid head tapering slightly at the chin
Columnar neck
Shoulders slope downwards
Chest is indicated by a simple line
Some female figures have rudimentary breasts
The buttocks are always flattened and set on a flexed pair of legs
Each figure bore the name of a specific male or female deity
Placed in temples and decorated with loom-woven band

Buk (mask)
Identification
Torres Strait.
Between Australia and Papa New Guinea
Turtle shell masks unique to this region
Mid- to late 19th century AD.
Turtle shell, wood, fiber, feathers, and shell
Information
In the Torres Strait, masks of turtle shells have been made since at
least the early 1600's
celebrating the people's legendary ancestors
Taught the people how to survive as well as how to
perform mortuary and initiation rituals.
These masks were typically worn over the head like a hat
Used in mortuary rites or celebrations to ensure increase in harvest or
fishing.
Used with grass costumes in ceremonies about death, fertility or a male
initiation
Ceremonies involved fire, drums and chanting
Some masks combine human and animal forms
This mask shows a bird placed on top

Hippo (tapa)
Identification

Nikhil Agrawal

Niue
c. 1850-1900 AD
Tapa or bark cloth
freehand painting
Information
Tapa cloth is generally made from paper mulberry bark
The artists use stencils to dye exposed parts of the
tapa with paint
After drying, designs are sometimes
repainted to enhance the effect
Sometimes from breadfruit or other trees as well
People would soak, scrape, beat, and ferment the bark to make it stickier
Made by women, sometimes collaboratively
Distinct from other Pacific art forms valued by European collectors
Generally made by men
Some of the tools and design implements (such as print blocks) were
sometimes produced by men
Actual cloth and its decoration were made by women
Traditionally worn as clothing
Each set of designs is to be interpreted separately

Tamati Waka Nene

Identification
Gottfried Lindauer
1890 AD.
Oil on canvas
Information
Tamati Waka Nene (English name, Thomas Walker), was a Maori chief
During the colonial period in New Zealandand
Was friendly toward the Europeans
Helped to protect the missionaries in his land
In the painting, he is shown from a Western perspective
Expresses the positive relationship between himself and the
culture through whose eyes he is portrayed
He is wearing a feathered cloak
It was labor intensive and ornamented with revealing his high status
Thousands of feathers would have been used for this cloak
He holds a tewhatewha
a long two-handed weapon that includes feathers hanging from the blade
Used to distract enemies in battle
It was also used as a means of signaling others in battle and
rallying the warriors
Emphasis on rank
Navigation chart

Nikhil Agrawal

Identification
Marshall Islands, Micronesia
19th to early 20th century AD
Wood and fiber
Information
The Marshall Islands consist of two island chains
The Ralik and Ratak of coral atolls
Rise 30 feet above the sea at their highest
Scattered across hundreds of miles of open sea.
Low lying and hard to see from a distance
Charts composed to steer thourhg the many islands to get to destination
The ocean plays such a vital role in navigation and environment
Navigators used the ocean itself to map their course
Focus on the currents, waves, and swells (called dunung) to
identify where the islands were located
Created maps of these dunung, not the various features of the
islands
Used the coconut midribs of leaves and strips of fiber for the chart
The wood makes it waterproof and buoyant
Charts were usually memorized and used as a last resort
Diagonal lines indicate wind and water currents
Small shells indicate position of islands

Malagan Display and Mask

Identification
Papa New Guinea
20th century
Wood, pigment, fiber and shell
Information
Used by one of the dancers on the last day of a Malangan ritual
Ceremonies send the souls of the deceased to the otherworld
Some ceremonies begin months after the death
Free the living from the obligation of serving the dead
Represents the idealized image of manhood
Indicates the relationship of a particular deceased person to a clan
Its hairstyle shows the style used to denote bereavement
In which the sides of the head are shaved and the bare head is covered
with lime dust
Fitting for the mortuary ritual for which it is worn
The masks have extremely intricate carving
Painted with colors denoting violence, war and magic
Artists use negative space

The Malagan Display

Nikhil Agrawal

20th century AD. Wood, pigment, fiber, and shell

Sculptures in the display show the deceased
Erected to represent the individuals life force

Presentation of Fijian mats and tapas cloths to Queen Elizabeth II

Identification
Fiji, Polynesia
1953 AD
Multimedia performance
Costume, cosmetics (including scent; chant; movement; and pandanus
fiber/hibiscus fiber mats), photographic documentation
Information
Tapa was a symbol of wealth and status
Often presented in ritual gift exchanges, matrimonial dowry, weddings,
births and deaths (especially when associated with royal or high ranking
families)
This presentation was a way of providing valued gifts in the ceremony marking
the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Fiji
Example of performance art
Imagery of royal crowns, geometric patterns and a floral
motif
Both genders participate
Men oversee the growth of the mulberry trees that
produce the tapa
Women turn the bark into cloth
Production
Bark is removed from the tree, soaked in water and treated till pliable
Clubs used to beat the strips into rectangular blocks to form cloth
Edges glued into large sheets
Decorated under local culture