The ear ornaments of the Marquesan men are very curious. An univalve shell, of a dead-white color, is cut into a circular shape, and filled with a sort of cement made of the resin and wood of the bread-fruit tree. Into this cement is pressed an ivory stem, carved with figures in relief, so that the whole ornament looks like a very large white headed nail. The stem is pushed through a hole in the lobe of the ear, so that the head of the nail projects forward, as seen in the right-hand figure of “[tattooed chiefs]” on page 1046. The name of the ornament is “taiana.”
Ornaments made of whales’ teeth are as fashionable among the Marquesans as among the Polynesians, and are worn by the chiefs suspended round their necks. Wooden ornaments bleached white are also used, and others are cut from shells. One ornament of which they are very fond is made from wood, wax, and seeds. It is in the form of a horseshoe, the framework being made of wood, which is thickly covered with wax. Into this are pressed the pretty black and scarlet seeds of the Abrus precatorius, arranged in rows radiating to the circumference. One of these ornaments is shown in the [illustration No. 3], on the same page and is drawn from a specimen in my collection. It measures eight inches in diameter, and is slightly concave on the outside, and convex on the inside. Very great pains have been taken in arranging the seeds; they are placed in a regular series of double rows, the black portion of each seed being pressed into the wax, so that only the brilliant scarlet portion is visible. Upward of eight hundred beads have been used in making this ornament, so that the trouble which is taken by the natives is very great.
Some of the chiefs wear a very curious ornament, which seems to take the place of the hair which they shave from their own heads, and is nothing more than a large bunch of hair cut from the head of a wife. As a rule, the Marquesan removes all hair from the body, except from the head, only one or two of the very old men allowing a few straggling hairs on the chin.
In Langsdorff’s travels an amusing incident occurred, illustrative of that feeling. In those days close shaving was the custom in Europe, so that when the officers went on shore they were found to have conformed to the fashion of the islands. They were talking very amicably together, when suddenly a chief stared intently into the face of one of the officers, and, with horror depicted in his features, rushed forward, and grasped him tightly. The officer naturally thought that he was going to be murdered; but the fact was, that the Marquesan had actually discovered a hair on his face, and was going to pull it out with his shell tweezers.
When they wish to be considered as wearing full dress, the better class of men wear a most elaborate cap, made of fibre, feathers, and shells. First, a broad fillet is plaited from cocoa-nut fibre, so as to pass round the forehead, after the manner of a cap without a crown. On the centre of this fillet is fixed a large plate of mother-o’-pearl, decorated with carving. In the middle of this plate is fixed a smaller but similarly shaded plate of tortoise-shell, and in the middle of that a still smaller disc of pearl shell. Some headdresses have three of these ornaments, as is the case with that which is figured in the [Marquesan chief] on the 1046th page.
In the fillet are also fastened a number of feathers, either from the tail of the cock or from that of the tropic bird, so that when the fillet is bound on the forehead the feathers will stand upright. The feathers of the tropic bird are greatly prized by the natives, who use them for various ornaments, and display great ingenuity in procuring them. Instead of killing the birds, and so stopping the supply of feathers, they steal upon them when they are asleep, and dexterously twitch out the two long tail-feathers. In process of time the feathers grow again, and so the supply is kept up. I mention the custom because it is contrary to the recklessness respecting the future which is usually found among savages.
The houses of the Marquesans are rather peculiar, especially those of the better kind. The native builder begins with making a platform of large stones, many of them being so enormous that ten or twelve men are required to move them. This platform is from ten to eleven feet high, and about thirty feet long by twelve wide. Upon this is erected the house, which is built with the back very much higher than the front, so that the roof slopes considerably, the back being perhaps twelve or more feet in height, and the front only five feet. The door is naturally small, and no one can enter without stooping. The walls at the end are no higher than that of the front, so that a considerable portion of each end is left open. As, however, the climate of the Marquesas is so equable, this is rather an advantage than otherwise.
The interior of the house is divided into two portions, one of which is left bare, with no covering to the stony floor, while the other part is considered as the dwelling-place, and the floor is covered with mats. The walls are also covered with matting. Near the back wall is the strangely made family bed. Two horizontal poles are placed about six feet apart, and a foot or so from the ground, and the space between them is filled with dry grass covered with mats. The sleepers lie on the mats, resting the back of their heads on one pole, and their feet on the other, and pass the night in this position, which seems to have been invented for the purpose of making the sleepers as uncomfortable as possible. Round the walls are hung the weapons and implements of the owner, such as spears, clubs, stilts, drums, slings, axes, and similar articles. The houses are always placed near trees, so that they may have the advantage of shade.
The Marquesans have a curious custom of erecting small and highly decorated buildings in honor of the children of great chiefs. These buildings are considered as acknowledgments of the legitimacy of the children; and if they were omitted, the parents would consider themselves insulted. They are protected by tapu, and after they are made are not repaired, but allowed to decay. Dr. Bennett, in his “Whaling Voyage round the Globe,” thus describes those edifices:—
“This compliment had been paid to Eutiti’s daughter at Vaitahú a few weeks before our arrival. It consisted of two small huts, neatly built with peeled hibiscus rods, which were covered with white tappa (bark cloth) and stained cocoa-nut sinnet. The interior was occupied by many of the same rods ranged vertically, graduated in height, and entwined with bunches of herbs. The face of the building was ornamented by a few boards, painted with mystic figures in black and red.