Bark-cloth in central Polynesia

by Wendy Arbeit of Multiculturegallery.com ( 27-Jul-2009 )

One of the few traditional crafts of the Pacific that reaches back centuries yet is still actively practiced is the making of tapa or bark-cloth. It is called siapo in Samoa, masi in Fiji, and ngatu in Tonga. These three island groups sit together in a sort of triangle just below the equator in the central Pacific Ocean and in the center of Polynesia. While siapo is fairly scarce in Samoa and masi is mostly made for tourists in Fiji, ngatu still plays an important role in Tongan culture. It once was made to be used as such ordinary household objects as sheets, blankets, room dividers, and curtains, but now commercial goods are used instead. Today, even more than in the past, tapa is used throughout Tonga and in the Tongan diaspora at formal occasions. No wedding, funeral, church service, or convocation could be held without ngatu. Tongans present it in a precise manner as an auspicious gift at these ceremonies. They fold it neatly and place it on the floor and seats where important persons sit. They stretch it out along the ground where the King might walk during his convocation. They hang it on the wall in back of a person lying in state. That person might also be wrapped in it before burial and another piece placed around the grave to shield the person during the internment. Certain special persons wear it around their waist at Sunday services after weddings. Throughout most of the Tongan islands, the rhythmic sound of tapa beating fills the air all week long. They're beating the inner bark of the Chinese mulberry tree to make it three times as wide and as thin as paper. Once a week the hollow beating sounds are replaced with the rich, thrilling sounds of women singing while they're gathered together to assemble and paint their 12-foot-long strips. The designs, rubbed on much in the way one might transfer the design of a coin onto a covering piece of paper, can be old and traditional, new to commemorate some special event, or specific to some geographic location. A typical finished size might be 15' wide by as much as 50' long. Old craft traditions are alive and well in Tonga. Girls and women of all ages make pandanus mats; shell, leaf, and flower necklaces and bracelets; coil baskets; and coconut leaflet fans. These are used by their makers, given as gifts, and sold in markets to Tongans and tourists alike. They are unique to Tonga and a source of pride to the makers and users. But none of these is as artistic, distinctive, and dear to the Tongan heart as its bark-cloth. It connects commoners with nobles, residents of Tonga with relatives who have moved away, and ancient times with the present day.