Tapa bark cloth "siapo"

Description

bark of the paper mulberry tree ‘u’a’, natural colour,

“Siapo” are decorated in two ways: either freehand (“siapo mamanu”) or by taking rubbings off a relief pattern carved into a plank or board. The dyes are made from a variety of plants and trees and an earth ochre called “ele”.

Throughout Samoan history, “siapo” has maintained its major role as an item of exchange and formal presentation. At all Samoan special occasions such as births, funerals, weddings, and investiture of “maitai” titles, sheets of tapa are included in the presentations and exchanges of valuables between families that accompany these ceremonies. Part of the payment to expert house and canoe builders consisted of “siapo”. In the formal presentations of gifts to special visitors or honoured guests, such as the “sua ta’ i” and the “ta’ alolo” gift procession, sheets of “siapo” always had a special place.

Comparing literature