Big Island Rentals

Traditional Hawaiian Kapa

Kapa is a fine cloth that was used extensively by ancient Hawaiians for bed covers, robes, capes, skirts, hair adornments, religious drapes, and numerous other purposes.  Although kapa is found throughout Polynesia, the art of native Hawaiian kapa is characterized by a distinct and arduous technique that produces a stronger cloth.          

The wood of a wauke (paper mulberry) tree trunk is cut and soaked in water.  Layer by layer, the bark is stripped by beating the wood with a rounded beater called a hohoa.  The layers are then soaked in seawater, beaten, left to ferment and dried in the sun.   Again, the bark pieces are soaked, pounded and fermented, then softened under banana leaves.  The softened bark is kneaded and beaten with a mallet, and once or twice more put through the process of soaking, pounding, fermenting, and beating with the kapa pounder.  The resulting cloth strips are sewn together to create a fine material.  The fabric is then ready to be formed into cloths, carrying nets, canoe sails, or a variety of other items.  Intricate patterns may or may not be applied using bamboo or ohio wood sticks dipped in natural dye.      

With the availability of woven cloth in the late 1890s, the method of making kapa became lost.  Various artists, such as the Big Island’s Kanae Keawe and Puanani Van Dorpe, have dedicated themselves to researching and reviving the old tradition of making bark cloth.   Among the Big Island places where kapa artifacts can be viewed are the Four Seasons Resort in Hualalai–which features a 6-1/2 feet by 7-1/2 feet kapa moe dating back to around 1850–and the Lyman Mission House and Museum in Hilo.