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Samoan Material Culture

Variation in Design Elements

Variation in Design Elements

From following the tattooing operation through its various stages, what appears complicated on first glancing at a completed design is really simple when dealt with in areas. Though the expert relies on mafaufau (experienced judgment), he makes use of anatomical landmarks by judging distances between points though he may not be able to express himself in words. A certain area has to be filled in and if the back is extra long an additional saemutu band fills the space. The lines are straight though some may show a curve from following the body contour. The aso fa'aifo curving in from the side to the pubis, the lines of the belt, and the bird's head over the front of the thigh show some curve, but there are no great difficulties involved. It may be said that the boundaries of the sectional areas are the same in all designs. The variation occurs in the different decorative treatment of the thicker bands, the dark areas, and the enhancement between the main lines of the design. There is much difference in appearance created even by using a serrated edge to the inner anterior boundary of the dark lausae as compared with a straight edge. In the wider bands of the back, the addition of fa'aila motifs at the ends of the canoe and the various bands makes considerable difference. Unenhanced bands are simply referred to by name but when specially treated receive the name of the motif as a qualifying word with fa'a preceding the motif. Thus the second tafani band in figure 322, 7 is enhanced with a large caterpillar motif, and the band is termed tafani fa'aanufe. Similarly, the addition of caterpillar, centipede, and other motifs between the main bands depend on the artist. Some are certainly an improvement while others have a tendency to become overdecorative and thus confuse the main lines of the design. These enhancements are secondary additions and should be considered in a full design in their proper proportion. In old time tattooing, the design was probably in the nature of figure 330, c throughout; the wide bands being unrelieved by fa'aila or other motifs, and the lines between the bands simply parallel thin lines placed close together.

The more elaborate the design, however, the longer it takes to complete. Thus, a straight line is quickly made with the wider implements, but if the line has to be serrated, it has to be gone over again with the narrowest comb. Every enhancement within a band, or on the dark spaces, takes extra time and care and the artist has to be paid accordingly; not only has to be paid more but he also eats more food. Hence enhanced designs may only be secured by those who can pay. The skilled tufunga ta tatau were like their confreres of the building guild. They created more elaborate design for those who could page 655pay and as they were the chiefs, the chiefs naturally had more ornamental designs than those of lesser rank and wealth. In olden days, rank and wealth were synonymous so no mistakes were made. Now they may be divorced, but the artist of the comb like his brother artist of the adz will do his finest work where the food is best and the reward most substantial.

Handy (14, p. 21) describes a difference in the aso talitu of a chief and a talking chief. I received no information, but the statement conforms with the general policy of the Samoan talking chiefs. They were the councillors and advisors. They seem to have deliberately created a number of artificial distinctions between themselves and the high chiefs in order to flatter them. When it came to material advantage in the distribution of food and fine mats, the distinctions still existed but the material advantage was on the side of the talking chiefs. Though some such distinction may have been created as a political move by talking chiefs, as regards other distinctions in special parts of the design being reserved to districts, these are more likely, if they occur, to have developed with a craftsman and a school rather than that districts used special designs as a particular badge. The craftsmen used the designs they had been taught or to which they added extra decoration and went wherever their services were paid for.

A number of names of different parts of the tattooing design have been erroneously put on record owing to the modern Samoan tendency to use k instead of t and ng instead of n in their present spoken speech. Such words as kapulu, pungialo, sai muku and kafangi should be tapulu, punialo, saemutu, and tafani.

The small triangular motif (pula tama) below the canoe on the back is also given as pe'a (flying fox) by Handy (14, p. 26). Pratt gives umangi as the tattooing on the lower belly, which must be an alternative for punialo. Marquardt (20, Taf. IV, 13) gives fa'a vala as the name of the fa'aila motifs on the inner anterior surface of the thigh, known as the auanga part of the lausae. The wide bands on the back below the tafani were given to me by Faioso as saemutu but both Marquardt and Handy give it as saimutu and saimuku.

The meanings of pula, tafani, and saemutu were not obtained.