Kauai History and Beating Kapa

Making kapa was hard work that required patience (ahonui) and humility (ha’aha’a). Plants must be grown, tools must be made, and large blocks of time set aside to slowly pound the fibers, and then decorate the cloth. Wauke (paper mulberry) was the preferred source of bast fibers for kapa, but it was also made from ʻulu, ōpuhe, maʻaloa, māmaki, ʻākala, ʻākalakala, and hau. The wauke tree was cut, stripped, and soaked in water. When the water was drained away, the fibers began to stick together and the entire bundle could be lifted as one mass (mo`omo`o). Mo`omo`o was then often stored until enough material had accumulated to make a large piece of kapa cloth. When enough mo`omo`o bundles were accumulated, these were soaked for half a day, then put on a flat stone (kua pōhaku) and pounded gently to loosen the fibers using a rounded beater (hoahoa). They were then laid between layers of mai`a (banana leaves) for a week to mature and ferment, making the fibers softer. These bundles were then laid on a long piece of wood with a flat even surface, called a kua kūkū. The yellowish wood of kāwa‘u was especially favored for making the wooden anvils because when struck by the wooden beaters, the wood of kāwa‘u produced resonant tones that were sometimes accompanied by chants. They beat the pulp until a solid strip formed. The cloth expanded greatly with each beating, and was often doubled over and beaten again. The first beating was called ho`omo`omo`o, the second kuku, and the third ho`oki.

The beaters and anvils were made by the men of the village. Kapa beaters were usually made from a particularly hard-wooded species known as koai‘e, a species closely related to koa. For the finishing work, each maker used a beater called an iʻe kūkū with four flat sides each carved with intricate geometric designs and patterns that would leave an impression in the cloth unique to the maker. This watermarking, or embossed pattern, is considered unique to Hawaiian kapa. The iʻe kūkū has grooves of various widths on each side for different purposes in working the cloth. The pepehi side may have only four grooves, while the ho’opai side may have twenty grooves. One side of the iʻe kūkū has a pattern known as the watermark. This is the side for the final beating which stamped a unique design permanently into the kapa.

The fermentation process and additional beatings used by the Hawaiians gave their kapa a superior homogenous quality. Hawaiian kapa also displayed the greatest variety of attractive geometric designs and texture not found anywhere else in Polynesia.