Selu la'au (wooden comb)

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Title

Selu la'au (wooden comb)

Content partner

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa

Collection

Te Papa Collections Online

Description

Selu la’au or selu pau as they are commonly known, are carved wooden combs made in Samoa. They were very popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s, and were worn in the hair for ornamental purposes. Manufacture Artisans carved them using a fretwork technique requiring the cutting of holes into the piece of thin wood to create intricate patterns. They were made from wood of a variety of tree species including pau (Manikara hoshinoi), manapau (Mammea odorata), toi (Alphitonia zizyphoides), toa...

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Format

Image

Date created

Gifted: 1953

URL

https://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/object/171449

Related subjects

Combs / Clothing & dress / wood / combs / Polynesian / Oceanic / woodcarving / Sāmoan / Savai'i

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