Ritual dish (Daveniyaqona), early 19th century. Fiji. Wood, 12 3/4 x 7 3/4 x 2 in. (32.4 x 19.7 x 5.1 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, 2017 Benefit Fund, Gordon Sze, MD, The Richman Family Foundation, and Steven Kossak Gifts, Andrea Bollt Bequest, in memory of Robert Bollt Sr. and Robert Bollt Jr., and Ruddock Foundation for the Arts Gift, 2018 (2018.433)
‘Atea’: Nature and Divinity in Polynesia Drawn from American collections and The Metropolitan Museum’s own holdings, ‘Atea: Nature and Divinity in Polynesia’ showcases some 30 works—figural sculpture, painted barkcloth, rare featherwork, and more—dating from the late 18th to the 19th century. November 19, 2018 – October 27, 2019.]]>
Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
”Atea” is a Polynesian cosmological term that refers to the moment when it was believed that light first sparked forth after many eons of thick, engulfing darkness, resulting in the birth of the first generation of gods. Across Polynesia, ritual artifacts were created for the powerful chiefs who descended from these gods and who, as political and religious leaders, were imbued with the spiritual essence (mana) of their forbears. Prestige items such as feather cloaks and headdresses reinforced their status and reputation and asserted genealogical connections with their divine ancestors.
The exhibition is organized chronologically in three sections. The first section, “Western Polynesia,” presents key ritual artifacts from the islands of Fiji, Tonga, and Niue that are the earliest distillation of this distinctly Polynesian ideology. Works on view in this section include a superbly executed figural sculpture of the female goddess Hikule’o, guardian of Pulotu, the watery world of darkness and an important place of origin for islanders; a god house constructed completely from coconut cord fiber; an impressive painted barkcloth; and regalia carved from highly coveted whale ivory and pearl shell.
The second section of the exhibition, “Eastern Polynesia,” presents depictions of important deities from Mangareva and the Cook Islands alongside an impressive feather, fiber, and dog-hair breastplate from Tahiti and exquisitely carved ceremonial staffs from the Austral Islands. “Hawaii,” the exhibition’s last section, features masterworks created for the elite ruling class from the late 18th and 19th century, such as a monumental sculpture of a Hawaiian deity and a remarkable, intricately woven fiber helmet and feather cape (’ahu ‘ula) that represents the highpoint of the Hawaiian feather and fiber art genre.
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