Korowai (cloak)

This korowai (cloak with tassel adornment) is made from muka (flax fibre) and wool. The cloak would once have been heavily tasselled, which the ornate border at the bottom would have accentuated. The bottom displays a variation of the niho taniwha (monster's teeth) pattern. Niho taniwha patterns typically feature triangular shapes arranged in vertical rows with the apex at 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.

Origin
The niho taniwha pattern has been identified as a design common to Te Arawa and Waikato iwi (tribes) of the central North Island.