356 Memoirs Bcniicc P. B'lsJwp Museum 



cups were rather dull, but with handlinc;- they acquired a lieautiful glossy polish. 

 Many cups were provided with a cord handle by which they were hunj^ y\\) 

 when not in use. This handle consisted of a loop of sennit passed through a hole 

 a short distance below the rim, the inner end being kept from slipping back 

 either by a knot or by a small disk of pearl shell, like a button. (See PI. i.viii, 

 A, I.) The finer grade of cups were used principally in kava drinking, which 

 gave the inner surface of the cup a coating' of glossy yellow enamel, like lacquer. 

 It is difficult to draw any line between cups proper and bowls, as the two 

 classes grade imperceptibly into each other. As a rule the bowls are larger and 

 thicker walled, and most specimens have recurved rims, that is, they are made 

 from more than half a nut. IMost of these bowls are provided with handles bv 

 which they can be suspended horizontally. One specimen in the Bishop Museum 

 has the handle cut in one piece with the body of the bowl (PI. i.viir. A, 2), but 

 as the bowl is evidently unused it seems doubtful whether this is an ancient 

 form. The handles of old specimens are of cord and appear to conform to a 

 single type. (See PI. Lviii. A, 3.) They were made as follows: 



A pair of holes were pierced through either side of the shell a short distance helow the 

 rim. A loop of sennit cord was passed through each pair of holes, the ends protruding on the 

 outside. .A large black seed was then threaded upon each end of the loop and pushed down 

 against the outer surface of the utensil. .\ cylinder of human bone, carved with horizontal 

 grooves, was next threaded on, followed by another seed. The two strands of cord were then 

 brought together and passed through a short thick ornament cut from the shaft of a human 

 humerous, carved into a tiki figure. Above this ornament both strands were threaded through 

 a single black seed and closely wrapped with a strand of fine sennit, giving them the appear- 

 ance of a single cord. The ends of the loops were either tied together above the center of 

 the bowl or interwoven and enclosed in a continuous wrapping which concealed the point of 

 juncture. IjOwIs arranged for suspension in this way were frequently provided with carved 

 wooden covers like those used for gourds. Bowls were usually rougher in finish than cups 

 and were rarely carved. 



Coconut bottles were made from the whole nut, the kernel was removed bv 

 a simple but ingenious method. (See PI. lviii, C.) 



A large ripe nut was husked and the shell around the largest eye ground away to form 

 an aperture about one inch in diameter. The nut was then placed in some stream where fresh 

 water shrimps were plentiful and was left for a few days. The shrimps, entering through the 

 aperture, picked the interior of the shell clean and left it ready for use. One of the smaller 

 eyes was then pierced with a pointed stick and a loop of heavy cord passed through and 

 secured on the inside, the outer end of the loop serving as a handle for the bottle. A wooden 

 stopper for the large aperture completed the utensil, which appears never to have been 

 decorated. 



A slightly difTerent type of bottle was used for the storage of scented oil 

 for the hair (PI. lviii, 5). 



These utensils were made from small, thick shelled nuts having a more or less pointed 

 stem end, which was ground off to below the eyes. The kernel was removed by the method just 

 described. Most bottles of this sort were elaborately carved, some of the specimens ranking 

 among the finest products of the native art. 



[96] 



