ornament, waist

human history

Manafau. Dancing skirt. Manafau are skirts worn to perform in by both men and women and children, they are made from fau (hibiscus) fibre and there are different variations of manafau depending on the maker, the wearer, and the village they hail from. The most basic manafau are made from natural coloured fau but there are others with embellishments such as dyed fau, decorated waistbands etc. This manafau is made from natural coloured fau as well as Lopa (red sandalwood) (red sandalwood) and hana (Job's tears) seeds. The hanging sections are made up of hana (Job's tears) and Lopa (red sandalwood) (red sandalwood) seeds and the ends are loose fau strips.

Accession number: 1982.194 Last Update: 3 Oct 2025
Other Name

Ta'ovala (Tongan)

Place
Tonga/Pacific
Accession Number

1982.194

Accession Date

31 May 1982

Other Id

50131 (ethnology)

Department

Pacific

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