Korowai (cloak)

This korowai (cloak with tassel adornment) is made from muka (flax fibre). The red and blue coloured border is made from the contemporary materials of wool and twine. Māori often incorporated modern materials such as wool into traditional woven garments for extra colour, decoration, or warmth. The border is presented in traditional Māori patterns, with thicker twine tassels woven into the cloak at one end to highlight the top.

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.

Big origin
This korowai was part of the collection of Peter Fraser, Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1940 to 1949, and appears designed to fit a larger person. It is 116 centimetres high and 130 centimetres wide.