Overview
This titi (dance skirt) recalls a 1920 visit to Sāmoa by the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII). To welcome the Prince, a Samoan weaver and a seamstress created this novel piece, combining indigenous fibres with European cloth.
The Union Jack had made a previous appearance in Samoan fashion. In the 1880s, the flags were popular in Āpia, Sāmoa’s main port. Locals wore them as lava-lava (wrap-around skirts) and shawls. They were probably showing support for the British, who were in dispute with the United States and Germany over control of Samoa.
This titi, made half a century later, is another expression of British support.