“Kava” Bowl

Bowl used to make and drink “kava,” an infusion made from the roots of the “Piper methysticum” which is consumed in the islands of Polynesia. In addition to its healing properties, it is also used as an offering. Preparation of “kava” is closely linked to all ritual and ceremonial life, and consuming it allows communication with the sacred and the identification of the chief with his ancestral gods. This bowl is known as the “sacred bowl of the marae Taputapuatea” and was likely a gift from Puni, Great Warrior Chief of the Bora Bora atoll, to Chief Tu of the island of Tahiti, who in turn gifted it to Máximo Rodríguez, an interpreter for the two Franciscan monks who were sent on Domingo Boenechea's expedition (1772-1773) to set up a mission there. It seems that this bowl belonged to the “marae” of Taputapuatea, on the island of Raiatea. The “marae” are sacred places where the gods were consulted and offerings were made, where chiefs were elected, and certain ceremonies celebrated.