Polynesian tapa, Samoa/Tonga Islands - Lot 138

Polynesian tapa, Samoa/Tonga Islands 19th-20th century Beaten bark and natural pigments based on mangrove roots, mulberry tree H. 200 cm - L. 135 cm Provenance : French private collection of a decorator, Paris Tapas was the first fabric to be available in the Pacific, and was used for a variety of purposes: clothing, shrouds, blankets, prestige money, ornaments and ceremonial items. Made from the bark of the paper mulberry tree, the bast was extracted and retted before being beaten and dried. Striking the bark with a mallet or tapa beater compacts the fibers and welds them together, making them more supple and impregnating them with pigments. The motifs evoke important events, ancestral myths and legends in an abstract, symbolic way. Beaten bark and natural pigments made from mangrove roots. Rectangular in shape and imposing in size, this piece is distinguished by its structured geometric decoration, composed of a succession of square shapes decorated with different motifs and enhanced with brown, ochre, brown and dark brown pigments. The overall surface suggests that it was varnished or coated with a composite material, probably to preserve the pigments. For tapas with the same surface material and similar floral stylistics, at the Oregon Museum of natural and cultural History, catalog #7-38, #7-440, #7-441. Expert : Aurore KRIER-MARIANI - 06 17 18 11 36