The ahu ula and mahiole of Kalaniopuu are now on display at Bishop Museum in Honolulu.
The ahu ula and mahiole of Kalaniopuu are now on display at Bishop Museum in Honolulu.
The exhibit showcasing Kalaniopuu’s ahu ula (feathered cloak) and mahiole (feathered helmet) is a partnership between Office of Hawaiian Affairs, National Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, and Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. It is on long-term loan for at least 10 years.
The ahu ula and mahiole were received during a ceremony held March 17 on Oahu. The exhibit, “He Nae Akea: Bound Together,” went on display March 19 drawing more than 2,700 people.
In 1779, the chief of Hawaii Island, Kalaniopuu, who traced his regal line to the great chief Liloa of Waipio, greeted an English captain named James Cook after his ship made port in Kealakekua Bay. As a demonstration of his goodwill, Kalaniopuu gifted the ahu ula and mahiole he was wearing to Captain Cook. Now for the first time, both have returned home to the island after leaving its shores on Cook’s ship 237 years ago, according to the partnership.
The feathered cloak and helmet have extrinsic value, but more importantly, they possess great intrinsic and spiritual significance, according to OHA. For Native Hawaiians, the ahu ula, mahiole, and all other feather work were reserved exclusively for the use of their alii, symbolizing their chiefly divinity, rank and power. From a historical perspective, the artifacts represent a period in the timeline of Hawaii when there was a balance between the cultural, political and spiritual parts of Native Hawaiians and the environment.
The construction of feather work in ancient Hawaii required an incredible amount of labor and craftsmanship. This ahu ula in particular has feathers from about 20,000 birds. Skilled trappers caught the birds by employing various techniques such as snaring their prey midair with nets, or using decoy birds to lure them onto branches coated with a sticky substance. They often harvested only a few feathers from each bird before releasing it back into the wild to produce more feathers. Skilled workers belonging to the alii class crafted the olona cordage backing, a netting used as the foundation for the cloak, onto which the bundles of feathers were attached, creating bold designs.
After the ahu ula and mahiole left on Cook’s ship, both were taken to England and passed through various museum owners and collectors. They eventually came under the care of Lord St. Oswald, who unexpectedly presented his entire collection in 1912 to the Dominion Museum in New Zealand, the predecessor of Te Papa Tongarewa, according to the partnership. The cloak and helmet have been in the national collection ever since.
In 2013, discussions began among Bishop Museum, Te Papa Tongarewa, and OHA to bring the treasures back to Hawaii.
Info: www.bishopmuseum.org, 847-3511. ■