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Air Tahiti Magazine 65
danseurs du groupe tahiti ora portant des coiffes et accessoires crees par tumata robinson dancers of the group tahiti ora wearing head dresses and accessories crafted by tumata robinson strong sign of power and necessity in the past, the shells ornaments wearing was reserved to the chiefs surnamed ari i in tahitian language, warriors and from a high rank, allowed to be invested with divine powers. the exterior appearance, fabulously distinguished themselves from other habitants. the archeologists have found several jewels of theirs composed by diverse shells (porcelain, pōreho, the terebridae, pū ) underlining the quality of this ancestral craftsman. chiefs necklaces, made with large pearl shell pendants were surprisingly elegantly done. once polished, the oyster shell chose for its consequent size was fixed on a large braided hair necklace (tubuai). other necklaces named hei in tahitian, were composedof several illumines golden reflects necklaces, strung on braided hair. generally made with tens of fully little pearl shell, the necklaces could gather about thirty of these. beside the necklaces, other shell jewels have been found such as bracelets, leg ornaments and pearl shell pectoral tablets named taumi. the ceremonial adornment ended up being brightly dense. > since many centuries, the shells fit in the center of the polynesian population continuous and cultural life. work and assembled in a delicate manner, these shells represent the adornments which the illuminated burst was underlined way before the arrival of the first european navigators. today, polynesian creators value this secular knowledge by the production of magnificent jewels and accessories. © s. joly t he contemporary archeologists work illustrates an interesting statement based on the position of the shells in the corporal decoration of the polynesian oriental islands, a geographic area which included the society of archipelagos, the marquesas islands, also hawaii and the cook islands. these fructuous researches were made inside archeological sites especially in the marquesas islands where the habitants fabricated corporal ornaments faster than in other archipelagos. thus sharpened, pierced and assembled shells, put on coconut fiber links, pandanus root or other natural fibers are labored and shaped since the immemorial times. revue de bord n°65 / air tahiti / on-board magazine n°65 39 © s. joly
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