Description:

North Pacific, Hawaiian Islands, ca. 19th century CE. A collection of 2 fine fragments of kapa (tapa) cloth – one is sewn together from several sheets as part of a bedcover known as a kapa moe, and the other is a singular panel with geometric patterns. Before the introduction of cotton, tapa (kapa) bark cloth was the primary textile material of Hawaii pre-European contact. The darker fragment is comprised of eight sheets sewn along one edge with kapa thread, these were once part of a bedcover that was several meters in length – the loose edges allow the sleeper to adjust the layers depending on temperature. The singular kapa piece may have been the top panel to a similar kapa moe, and the patterning is very clear when the piece is backlit! Size of single kapa: 7.5" L x 6" W (19 cm x 15.2 cm)

Please note this item falls under the Safeguard Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act and is not eligible for international shipping. Native American, Alaska Native, & Native Hawaiian objects can only be shipped within the United States.

Provenance: private Newport Beach, California, USA collection

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#160978

  • Condition: Both are fragments of a larger piece. Wormholes and old inactive insect activity on kapa moe sewn panels. Dark discoloration and staining. Geometric patterns on other cloth are faint but discernable when backlit.

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January 29, 2023 9:00 AM MST
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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