Important and Rare Royal Bowl, Hawaiian Islands
'umeke la'au pakaka
Wood (probably kou)
diameter 13 1/8in (33.2cm)
Provenance:
Queen Liliuokalani, Hawaii
Paul Kahn, San Francisco
Morris Pinto, New York
Mark and Carolyn Blackburn, Honolulu, Hawaii
Published:
Kaeppler, Adrienne, The Mark and Carolyn Blackburn Collection of Polynesian Art, (2010: fig. 655)
According to Kaeppler, "This bowl with butterfly and block repairs on the bottom shows that stone tools were probably used in its manufacture" (2010: p. 389)
Finely hand-carved, probably from kou wood, revealing the vivid natural contrast between the golden sapwood and the rich, dark heartwood; fine varied honey and dark brown surface with the original rich kukui nut finish to the patina.
