TEVAU MONEY COIL SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS

One of the most remarkable forms of currency found throughout Oceania are Tevau, feather money coils from the Santa Cruz Islands in Temotu Province at the eastern end of the Solomon Islands.

The coils are made from the feathers of the scarlet honeyeater (Myzomela cardinalis), known locally as mungau. Throughout much of the Pacific, red feathers are revered as a sacred and spiritually charged material and as such they are a valuable exchange item.
Tevau could be used in payment for high value items such as canoes and the pigs that are central to the village economies in many Pacific cultures. Tevau also played an important role in the payment of bride wealth
Late 19th, early 20th century.
Collection Alexandre Bernand, France
Renaud Vanuxum, Paris
Santa Cruz Islands, Solomon Islands, Temotu Provence.

Price: Upon request