406 Memoirs Bcniicc P. Bislio/^ Miisciiin 



Triton trumpets were highly ])rized and were used in war and in reHgious 

 cereninnies. Old s])eciniens are still quite commonly to he found in iiic'ac. Ac- 

 cording to Handy the Triton trumpet was called f>iitoiia, and the shell itself 7'cliiiic 

 no tc Jiiano. "wife of the shark." The maternal uncle of the first child horn in a 

 chiefly family announced the event l)y a l:)last on a trumpet of this kind. 



FLUTES 



The Marquesans used hoth mouth Hutes and nose flutes. 



The nose tlute, called tiy the natives of Hiva Oa piilirkiihcku, is made from a single 

 joint of bamboo ^4 to lj4 inclies in diameter and 15 to 20 inches long. The upper end of the 

 flute is closed by the sei)tum of the joint, while the lower end is o])en. The blow hole is in 

 the side of the instrument, immediately below the septum, and the stops in most flutes are 

 placed in the lower half of the tube, in line with the blow hole. (See PI. Lxxni, G.) In 

 historic times the holes appear to have been made by burning with a hot iron. The usual 

 number of stops is two, but some instruments have three ami a thite found by Handy in 

 L'a Pou (PI. Lxxni, F) has four stojjs, two of which are placeil a short distance below the 

 blow hole ; the other two in the usual position. The lower end of this tlute is roughly cut, 

 suggesting that it was originally longer. 



In ancient times nose flutes were sometimes decorated with hurned de- 

 signs made with a stone or hone point heated in tlie fire. 



A peculiar nose flute in the Bishop Museum ( I'l. lxxiii. 7; ) attrihuted to 

 the Marquesas, is made from a joint of hamhoo 22^4 inches long and 1^ inches 

 in diameter and is closed at hoth ends. 



Along one side of the flute are five holes, each alxjut % of an inch in diameter. The 

 top hole is close to the septa of the joint while the others are placed at equal intervals, hi 

 line with the central hole two others are pierced at equal intervals in the circumference of 

 the tube. The flute is decorated with burned designs of decidedly non-Marquesan character so 

 that its Marquesan origin seems doubtful. It is probably Tongan. 



Nose flutes are now ohsolete in the Maripiesas, and \-ery few persons can 

 l^lav them ])roperlv. 



In ])la\ing, the instrument is held with the edge of the closed end resting against the 

 septum of the nose and the blow hole below and a little distance away from the right nostril. 

 The body of the flute inclines downward and to the right and most of the knack in playing 

 the instrument lies in holding it at the correct angle. The upper end is supported in the left 

 hand, the left nostril being closed by the thumb. The stops are manipulated with the fingers 

 of the right hand. In the Ua Pou specimen the two upper stops must have been played with 

 the left hand. Several of the flutes seen had one of the stops plugged with a wad of coconut 

 fiber, and it is said that a beginner would learn to play well upon one sto]) before attempting 

 to use more. 



The ordinary mouth flute (piiakaliaii) (PI. lxxiii, D) is still used through- 

 out tlie Marquesas. One informant helieved that it was not an ahoriginal in- 

 strument, hut if foreign it must have heen introduced at an early date. 



The mouth flute is made from a long joint of bamboo, rareh' over three-(|uarters of an 

 inch in diameter. The ujiper end is closed by the septmn of the joint. The soinid is produceil 



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