Korowai (cloak)

This korowai (cloak with tassel adornment) combines the traditional weaving material of muka (flax fibre) with the modern materials of wool and twine. Māori often incorporated modern materials such as wool into traditional woven garments for extra colour, decoration, or warmth. Measuring 87 centimetres high by 115 centimetres wide, this korowai would have been used for adornment as well as for warmth and protection from the elements.

Muka
Muka is derived from the sword shaped leaves of the flax plant (Phormium tenax), an evergreen found mainly in swampy or low lying areas around New Zealand. It was made by stripping the outer layer of flax with a shell (often a mussel shell). The fibre was then washed and pounded with a muka patu (blunt stone or wood club) to leave a fibrous thread that was silky and soft to touch. The thread was then bound together into a sturdy chord and sometimes dyed before weaving.

Weaving
Cloak weaving was always done from left to right with the work suspended between two upright turuturu (weaving sticks) stuck into the ground. For large cloaks, two pairs were necessary to keep the operative edge at the correct height.