Per yesterday’s post (see: https://eskildoodle.com/2023/06/07/tapa-and-mulberry/) we have some Polynesian artwork on tapa from French Polynesia. The tapa was made from the inner bark of a paper mulberry tree, similar to the one we walked by yesterday in our own neighborhood.
The top image shows a stylized drawing of the honu or sea turtle which has great significance to the Polynesian culture. The lower one is a diagram of Fatu Hiva, an Island in the Marquesas that we visited by freighter in 2012 and again in 2016 where we bought these pieces.
On each visit we hiked the trail from Omoa to Hanavave, the two, sea-level villages noted on the lower artwork. It is a distance of 11 miles over a 1500 foot elevation pass between two heavily wooded valleys. It was challenging and glorious adventure and was certainly worth repeating. We still marvel over the memories of that beautiful place which were resurrected by the discovery of a paper mulberry tree growing in our own neighborhood.
#fatuhiva #omoa #hanavave #polynesia
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