Pareu
Wāhanga PacificRā Tāpiringa 15 Mar 1994Accession Number 1994.60Kupu whakaahua Pareu. Dance skirt. Bundles of kiriau strands (hibiscus fibre) are wrapped and knotted around a thick 3-ply plait made of kiriau strands. Further defining the waistband…
Pareu. Dance skirt. Bundles of kiriau strands (hibiscus fibre) are wrapped and knotted around a thick 3-ply plait made of kiriau strands. Further defining the waistband (approximately 60mm from the top of the waistband) strands of kiriau interweave across the bundles of kiriau, extending across the width of the Pareu. A strip of woven rauara (pandanus), approximately 86mm wide, woven out in check, is hand-sewn onto patterned fabric using nylon wire. This strip is then hand-sewn onto the top of the pareu ura using cotton thread. Twelve flower representations created from kiriau are placed across the woven strip. At the centre of six flower representations, a cluster of pupu rengarenga (small yellow shells) and a puka seed are hand-sewn using nylon wire. The remaining six flower representations are decorated at the centre with a cluster of poepoe seeds (Job's tears seeds) and a puka seed, hand-sewn using nylon wire. The waistband is further decorated with multiple tassels made of kiriau. The tassels have either nylon wire or strands of kiriau wrapped around the top of the kiriau fibres. Each tassel hangs from a thread decorated with puka seeds, poepoe seeds, and pupu rengarenga.