* Vintage Samoan Tapa cloth* or Siapo

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

* Vintage Samoan Tapa cloth* or Siapo:
$525.00

Vintage Samoan Tapa cloth or Siapo
Vintage Siapo in very good condition. Extremely well executed design with intricate detailing.
This could possibly be credited to Mary Pritchard. Excellent condition.
Dimensions: 1460 mm x 1510 mm.

Info about Samoan Siapo.Siapo, also called Tapa cloth, is one of the oldest Samoan cultural art forms. For centuries Siapo making has been passed down the generations. It is a major art form and an important symbol of Samoan culture. Tapa cloths have been used for various purposes throughout Samoan history, including as traditional clothing, burial shrouds, and ceremonial items. They are still commonly used in Samoa for traditional purposes as well as for everyday uses such as bed coverings, room dividers, household decorations, and as tourist items.
The preparation process involved in the materials used to create Siapo is an art itself. The bark used to make siapo comes primarily from the mulberry family. The tree stalk is carefully tended so that is grows straight with very few branches; it is harvested once it reaches one-to-two inches in diameter. The bark is stripped off the stalk in one even pull. From the stripped bark the soft inner bark, called the bast, is separated from the tough outer bark. Moistened bast is scraped with 3 different clam shells, varying in sharpness, to clean away any remnants of the discarded outer bark. The scraping also softens and spreads the fibers. The narrow strip of bast is then placed on a wooden anvil and pounded with a wooden beater. This beating process causes the bast to flatten and gradually spread out to become wide, thin pieces of cloth. This unfinished cloth, called u’a, is weighed down with stones to be dried and bleached by the sun. To create various sizes of cloth, strips of u’a are pasted together with arrowroot paste, called masoa. Holes are patched with u’a and masoa. Once the cloth fully dries, it is ready to be decorated.Dyes used in decorating siapo are derived from a number of plant sources. O’a, which is extracted from the bark of the blood tree, is a brown dye that is the base for all other dyes; as it ages it darkens from a pale tan to a dark brown. Black dye, or lama, is made by burning the nut of the candlenut tree; the charcoal is collected and mixed with o’a to make lama. Loa is a bright red dye made from seeds of the lipstick tree mixed with o’a. Yellow dye, ago, is extracted from tumeric root juice; ago is a popular color but is known to fade over time.
The main design patterns or symbols used in Siapo are reflections of elements in the Samoan Environment.
Traditionally there are thirteen symbols used in Siapo, most of these represent pandanus blossoms and leaves, breadfruit leaves, trochus shells, footprints and other
bird forms, starfish and navigating symbols as compass sun and moon.
These motifs are typically presented within a grid created by rectangular or oblong sections on larger Siapo.
Two techniques are used in creating the designs: siapo ‘elei (the rubbing method) and siapo mamanu (the freehand method).
Siapo ‘elei uses a design board (upeti) to imprint designs on the bark cloth. An unfinished cloth is placed on a upeti that has been covered with dye; the top surface is then rubbed to transfer the design from the board to the cloth.
 
About Tapapacifica
I have been collecting Pacific Tapa cloths for about 30 years,and have gained a lot of knowledge about the subject.
As I\'ve reached my limit space wise I decided to sell a large portion of my collection off and over the last years I have sold a number of Tapa cloths to collectors, galleries, resorts, Government departments and museums.
Over the last years I have also been working alongside interior designers as Tapa cloths have become sought after as major artworks.
A small part of my collection is on loan in museums in many parts of the world. For more info: www.tapapacifica.com.
Thanks for your interest, questions are always welcome.