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Te katau

human history
  • Other Name

    Te katau (English)

  • Description

    Te katau. Waist ornament of shells. This is worn, by girls and young women, over the traditional skirt as part of their dance attire. This is made up of four components; te burewa (small cowrie shells), te ningoningo (small shells), dried baa ni kaina (pandanus leaves) and te kora (coconut fibre sennit cordage). A wide band of baa ni kaina is rarangaki (weaved) together, forming the base of te katau. Two rows of shells adorn the length of band.

    One row is of te burewa, a total of sixty-one, perforated and threaded onto the band. The other row is of te ningoningo, altogether sixty-two pieces and are also perforated and threaded. Dual two-ply te kora are used to thread each individual row of shells and tied together at each end. Women are tasked with making te katau, however the perforations is a work completed by men. The unique feature of this piece is attributable to the bold use of two distinct shells, particularly te ningoningo.

  • Place
    Tabiteuea/Gilbert Islands/Kiribati
  • Accession Number
    1936.295
  • Accession Date
    1936
  • Other Id

    22997 (ethnology)

    246 (Maude Collection)

  • Department

    Pacific

Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply

Images and documents

Images

  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Te katau; 1936.295; 22997, 246; Cultural Permissions Apply
  • Ornament

Artefact

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