Siapo mamanu (tapa cloth)

This is a rare example of a siapo mamanu (tapa cloth) from Samoa. The making of barkcloth or tapa was once widespread throughout the islands of the Pacific. In the 21^st century, it is most strongly practised in the island groups of Fiji, Tonga, and Samoa. Barkcloth made in Samoa is called siapo.

Materials

Siapo makers use the bark of the u’a (paper mulberry tree) to make their cloth. The bark is carefully peeled off the tree in strips and then the inner bark is separated and scraped clean. It is then pounded until it widens into a larger size. The pieces of cloth go through a process where they are pasted together to make a larger cloth then decorated.

Decoration techniques

Siapo makers decorate the cloth in two ways: either freehand or by taking rubbings off an ‘upeti - a relief pattern carved into a plank or board. They make dyes from a variety of plants and trees and an earth ochre called ‘ele. The creative flair of siapo makers is seen in their arrangement of motifs and the clever use of a restricted colour palette. The motifs used usually represent plants and animals. A distinctive element on this siapo, is the date 1896 and the name Vaisala, (a village in Savai'i) that is written in approximately the centre of the tapa.

Acquisition history

This siapo mamanu is one of four tapa cloths donated to the museum by Michael Powles.Michael is the younger son of Guy Richardson Powles, High Commissioner to Western Samoa from March 1949 to April 1960 (when he was much involved in the preparations for Independence), and later New Zealand's first Ombudsman. Michael believes that these pieces were given to his parents during that period, although it is also possible that some were given during the mid 1960s when Sir Guy and Lady Powles visited their older son, Guy, who was then Chief Justice in Apia.