Rarest huge Papua Ceremonial turtle coconut fiber Tapa cloth 85x47"

Description

Rarest huge Papua Ceremonial turtle coconut fiber Tapa cloth 85x47", 220x120cm. Tapa cloth (or simply tapa) is a barkcloth made in the islands of the Pacific Ocean, primarily in Tonga, Samoa and Fiji, but as far afield as Niue, Cook Islands, Futuna, Solomon Islands, Java, New Zealand, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and Hawaii (where it is called kapa). In French Polynesia it has nearly disappeared, except for some villages in the Marquesas.The word tapa is from Tahiti and the Cook Islands, where Captain Cook was the first European to collect it and introduce it to the rest of the world.
As early as the sixth century B.C., trees of the Moraceae family were used to produce a bark cloth in Asia. The preferred species, Broussonetia papyrifera or paper mulberry was later introduced into the Pacific islands, particularly Polynesia where the art of decorated bark cloth, tapa, flourished. In Hawaii, Kapa was a prized commodity,the chief item of trade amongst the islanders and with Western explorers. By the late 19th century, there was a sharp decline in tapa production, though some islands like Samoa continued its manufacture for export trade.In former times the cloth was primarily used for clothing, but now cotton and other textiles have replaced it. The major problem with tapa clothing is that the tissue loses its strength when wet and falls apart. Tapas made with coconut fiber are extremely rare.