In this interview Sue Berman talks with Daren Kamali about the Real Gold taonga commonly known as 'the tapa book'.
The book is available to view for the month of March 2019 in the reading room of Heritage Collections - level 2 Tāmaki Pātaka Kōrero | Central City Library.
To learn more tune into the Tapa Talk series here at the Auckland Libraries podcast series. https://soundcloud.com/auckland-libraries/sets/tapa-talks
You can view a digital copy here: https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/rarebooks/id/144/rec/5
Between 1768 and 1779 James Cook led three voyages of British exploration to the Pacific. As a result many taonga from Aotearoa and the islands of Moana-nui-a-Kiwa made their way to Europe – including the samples of bark cloth collected in this book.
The book’s title is A catalogue of the different specimens of cloth collected in the three voyages of Captain Cook – but is often simply called ‘the tapa cloth book’. It was compiled by Scottish bookseller Alexander Shaw, who in 1787 was based in London.
There are 63 copies of the book known to be still in existence. They are each unique, containing different samples of cloth arranged in varying order. They are the earliest known specimens to survive, and are a valuable source of information about Pacific fabrics prior to the influence of European textiles and metal tools.
The library’s copy was donated by the Auckland businessman, art collector and philanthropist James Tannock Mackelvie (1824-1885).
Reference: A catalogue of the different specimens of cloth collected in the three voyages of Captain Cook. London: Printed for Alexander Shaw, 1787.
Photo - Daren Kamali, photographer Sue Berman, February 2019.
