Taona n riri te burerewa

Taona n riri te burerewa. Used as adornment for dance costumes, this ornamental belt features perforated burewa (small white cowrie shells) strung onto a cord of te kora (coconut sennit) then incorporated into a thickly woven belt of baa ni kaina (pandanus leaves). It is tied around the waist of a female dance performer, atop the riri, or dance skirt. All such decorative waist ornaments are collectively termed taona n riri. The burerewa are white in colour with a slight yellow tinge and an overall glossy sheen. They are arranged in two rows down the length of the taona n riri increasing the band's width. Two ties of natural baa ni kaina are incorporated to the ends.

Ingoa Kōrero Noa

Adornment

Ingoa Kē

Te Katau no Bunewa

Shell belt

Wāhi

Onotoa/Gilbert Islands/Kiribati

Accession Number

1936.295

Rā Tāpiringa

1936

Tohu Tuakiri Kē

24055 (ethnology)

110 (Maude Collection)

Wāhanga

Pacific