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Air Tahiti Magazine 65
nature ©t. zysman > from large cassis shells they obtained the best copies by cutting and smoothing its bent back lip part. strangely, elegant polynesian women whose ears were pierced would not fix any kind of shell jewels on them but plants and nice-smelling flowers such as (ferns, flowers of jasmine). one of the indispensable elements of the costumes of the contemporary traditional dance. worn by the masculine or feminine dancers, these headgears, taupo o in reo tahiti, are directly inspired indeed by their magnificence and used supplies, ornaments were used by the ari i and religious dignitaries of the ancient times. noble material the shell is a noble material of which colors and unsuspected reflection are an inexhaustible source of inspiration for the craftsmen. there are multiple varieties collected on beaches, in lagoons and on the polynesian reefs. often buried under the sand, these pupu (term indicating shells in reo tahiti) in the gradations of red, grey, yellow, brown, green, white given luster are cleaned, polished and shaped to finally bring a colored touch and sophisticated in the craft creations. in front of this rich mix of colors, the creator can give free rein to his imagination and adapt himself to the envy of his customers. the beauty of these shells in the rough is nothing by comparison with what they will reveal once cleaned, polished and cut. square, round, rectangular, oval, all the forms are possible, according to the need of the creative craftsman who looks for a completed harmony for its future adornment. > ari i and vahine with the colonization and the christianization of the polynesian islands from the beginning of the 19th century, the ancient religious system is going to disappear little by little provoking a radical turnover of the society. numerous taboos, (tapu in reo tahiti) and rules fall. this acculturation, from an ethnological viewpoint is going to be translated by the democratization of certain count of practice formerly reserved for the elite. it becomes the same for ornaments using shells, they are gradually going to become accessories of fashion and beauty losing their religious meaning and crowned. more striking, they are going to be from now on a privileged ornament of vahine, the women in reo tahiti. as for the headgears of splendor, brought out of their ritual meaning, they are going to re-appear as tens of varieties of shells used a large variety of shells (more than a hundred) is used by the craftsmen. some of them, such as pearl shell, burgo and porcelains are frequently used in the composition of adornments. in orders to create a necklace, several hundreds of shells are generally used. (for example, the classical yellow necklace: about 500 little shells to make a usual necklace) list of some shells: buccin, cardita, conch, snail (often small sized coming from the australes islands), oyster, mussel, tridacne, stroup, porcelain, burgo, cones, seeds from the marquesas islands, pearls, keshis, mabe. ©l. pesquie -bleu lagon production
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