Bark Cloth
date: label: Accession Date
content: 1858
label: Collection Date
content: 1838 to 1842
name: label: Donor Name
content: United States Exploring Expedition
notes: label: Notes
content: BARK CLOTH PAINTED FREEHAND IN PANELS OF BLACK AND RED. THE BORDERS ARE PAINTED RED, ENCLOSING TWO BLACK PANELS AND THE CENTRAL PANEL IS RED WITH LARGE BLACK DIAMONDS. HAS ORIGINAL PEALE TAG (DIFFICULT TO MAKE OUT). EXAMINED AND SAMPLED BY KENNETH P.EMORY, BISHOP MUSEUM, JUNE 1941.
label: Notes
content: FROM CARD: "(THIS INFORMATION GIVEN BY K. P. EMORY, BISHOP MUSEUM, 6/24/41.)"
label: Notes
content: Heavy stiff tapa which appears to be manufactured from at least four strips of tapa each 48 cm wide. Tapa is also made from multiple layers all glued together probably with a natural starch paste such as arrowroot (per Adrienne Kaeppler, Curator for Oceania Ethnology). The top layer has a black glazed surface with central triangular dark reddish brown forms that appear to be painted on under the black resinous glaze. The underside of each tapa is a natural tan but is stained brown in some areas from bleed through of colorant. Impressed parallel and diagonal lines cover the surface on the underside. Tapa appears to have been rubbed on a board to make the impressed lines and then heavily glazed with the triangular forms appearing as subtle design elements. The Samoans used o'a sap mixed with special charcoal or black dye from lama nut kernels to make the black glaze.
label: Record Last Modified
content: 31 Jul 2020
label: Specimen Count
content: 1
place: label: Place
content: American Samoa (not certain), Samoa (not certain) / United States (not certain), Polynesia
topic: label: Topic
content: Ethnology
culture: label: Culture
content: Samoan
setName: label: See more items in
content: Anthropology
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: NMNH - Anthropology Dept.
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: 66A00050
label: USNM Number
content: E2982-0
objectType: label: Object Type
content: Barkcloth
physicalDescription: label: Length - Object
content: 204 cm
label: Width - Object
content: 177 cm