Using bamboo, we will make stamps and Tapa (cloth). The first step is to make a Pā’ū (Pā’ū = skirt).
It is called Ohe Kapala, meaning Kapala (Kapala: stamp), made of ‘Ohe (= bamboo). Wauke (bauke = paper mulberry) is peeled and pounded to make cloth, which is then filled with designs.
The colors for this work are taken from nature and are now generally inorganic pigments derived from minerals and refined.
The stamp designs are unique to Polynesia, and although there are more than 100 different types of stamps, most of the designs are nowadays impossible to decipher the meaning of the patterns.
The design of Lei in Hala also represents Niho manō (shark’s tooth: Niho = tooth) and also Pūpū (shell).
Which design represents what depends on the artist’s conception.
