tapa (bark cloth)

“From God and Tonga I descend” – Tongan Coat of Arms

From birth to death, a Tongan is forever draped and dressed in tapa. The Tongan tapa cloth, or ngatu, embodies the benevolent nature of Polynesian gift-giving, where it is offered during childbirth, weddings, funerals, and birthdays as a symbol of wealth and cultural inheritance. The fibrous fabric is beaten into form from the inner bark of the paper mulberry tree and hand-painted exclusively by women, marking an exceptionally proud tradition of female artistic expression.

This particular bark cloth most likely portrays Tongan heritage and royal descent as depicted by the crown of the Tongan coat of arms (ko e Sila ‘o Tonga), which represents the ruling monarchy and symbolizes the nation as a whole. The three-dots motif, or tolu’i hea, portray the three kingly dynasties of Tonga, while the geometric bars delineating the separate “sections” of the cloth most likely depict fata'o Tui Tonga, the pattern of the sennit bindings that support the king’s roof.