Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability

CAS Anthropology Collections Database


Catalog Number

CAS 2006-0003-0014   CAS 2006-0003-0014; Tapa cloth
Category Textiles
Object Name Tapa cloth
Culture Polynesian: Fijian
Global Region Oceania
Country Fiji
State/Prov./Dist. Island: Namuka-i-Lau
County
Other Geographic Data unknown
Maker's Name Ofa Seru (?)
Date of Manufacture ca. 1973
Collection Name N/A
Materials Mulberry bark; Vegetal dyes
Description Nearly square tapa cloth, made from strips of mulberry bark which have been beaten into thin sheets that are then overlapped and pasted together to form larger sheet; Central rectangular area is divided into two triangles (one painted black and the other brown), each containing a negative circular design; Series of multiple borders frame the central design, each border painted and/or stamped with a repetitive geometric design; All but one of the borders is black and white, the exception being brown; “OFA SERU 2x2” is written in ink on reverse; “MADE IN FIJI NAMUKA” is stamped and obverse; All four edges have been cut with a scissors.
Dimensions (cm) Width = 63.0, Length = 67.0