Cloth

Barkcloth from Hawaii is called kapa and was made from the bark fibres of the paper mulberry tree (Broussonetia papyrifera). It was used locally to serve as wrapping for important people and to contain objects. It was also an exchange valuable. Europeans enjoyed the cloth’s rich designs during their encounters with the Pacific islanders. It is possible that this item and eight other examples are the same as those listed in the museum register as samples donated by the Devon & Exeter Institution in 1868.

Object Summary

Accession Loan No.
58/1994/4
Category
Ethnography
Collection Class
Textiles and equipment
Collection Area Region
POLYN
Material
bark
Common Name
cloth
Simple Name
cloth
Production County
Hawai’i
Production Country
Hawaiian Islands (United States of America)
Production Year High
1868

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barkcloth fragment (kapa)