The Material Culture of the Cook Islands (Aitutaki)
Baskets
Baskets.
The best type of basket or satchel made in Aitutaki has been derived, both in material and technique, from the sleeping mats just described. For convenience of description, therefore, this section has been plated after mats. It is certain however, that the food receptacles first to be described were evolved before the mats. The mat was a luxury in a sense, but the food receptacles were a necessity that must have demanded the attention of the Polynesian ancestors at an earlier stage in the development of the plaiting craft.