A RECENTLY DISCOVERED MARAE IN THE TUAMOTU GROUP

A RECENTLY DISCOVERED MARAE IN THE TUAMOTU GROUP

By BENGT DANIELSSON, Associate Anthropologist Bernice P. Bishop Museum.

WHILE customs and traditions in Polynesia generally speaking have survived better on barren, unattractive and far-away atolls than on high and fertile islands, exactly the contrary is true about archaeological remains. Good building material is lacking on atolls and due to the low elevation above sea level constructions are easily destroyed by waves and winds. In the Tuamotu group at least four devastating cyclones have occurred during the last hundred years, and what little they have left the still more frequent tidal waves have swept away. It is therefore not surprising that the number of well preserved cult-places or maraes (almost the only stone constructions made by the natives) is very small in the Tuamotus, whereas, for instance, in Tahiti many impressively well preserved marae sites still can be found, in spite of the systematic destruction and neglect since the introduction of Christianity at the beginning of the last century.

Studies of maraes in the Tuamotu group have been made only by Seurat (1) and Emory (2, 3). Seurat visited the Tuamotus at the turn of the century and described in detail two maraes on Fakahina and one on Fagatau. Emory's extensive studies made during the Bishop Museum expeditions in 1929–30 and 1934 cover fifteen atolls from all parts of the group. Characteristically enough out of the total number of 111 maraes recorded by Emory only four were, however, still intact. In order to illustrate still better the rapid rate of destruction of marae sites since the break down of the native culture in the second half of the last century, I can mention that on the island which I know best, Raroia, old men still point out and name 42 marae sites on which they had witnessed ceremonies when they were young. Today, on half dozen of these sites an overturned and broken slab or two can still be found, but in all the other sites not a trace is left.

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Although primarily interested in other types of research I also took advantage of every occasion during my recent expedition to the Tuamotus, November, 1949 - April, 1951, to search for marae remains. After innumerable futile boat trips and field excursions eventually I found to my great amazement at the end of my stay when I had already given up all hope, on Takume atoll, in the north-eastern part of the group, a hitherto unknown marae, which not only is remarkably well preserved but also presents several very interesting features.

The marae is called Marae Tefarateuteu—after a certain variety of pandanus with reddish fruits which grows there abundantly—and is situated on the south-west end of the atoll about a mile from Homo, the main village, on a land called Kararekeakea. When “discovered” (actually it was of course known to the natives and pointed out to me by them), the marae was completely overgrown with thick vegetation of pandanus and Guettardia speciosa, which certainly to some extent had protected it from vandalism. Another fortunate circumstance which had saved this marae also from the devastation of waves and winds was the fact that it was built on an elevated plateau. Although situated only about ten feet higher than the surrounding ground the construction had escaped damage during the cyclone of 1903, while all the other maraes on the atoll were destroyed. The marae site was surveyed with the help of the natives and additional information was given by the last sage of Takume-Raroia, Te Iho a Te Page.

The cult place is an unusually extensive compound of five separate courts, tahua (see plate I). There was perhaps a sixth court immediately north of court E, as indicated by the stone pile and the small platform, but this can not be determined with certainty. The compound measures 80 by 58 feet, the largest court E being 34 by 33 feet, and the smallest D 16 by 13 feet. There are rectangular platforms, ahu, on four of the courts while the remaining court A only has two rows of small quadrangular platforms along the short end facing each other. Immediately north of court B is a huge circular pile of coral blocks, 13 feet in diameter, which indicates the place of the earth oven, kopihe, used for ceremonial meals. All the platforms are well preserved and - 224 about three-fourth of the stone uprights, keho, are still standing. Well defined ridges of pebbles enclose courts A, B, C and D, whereas court E is marked off only with uprights. The rectangular platforms are still filled with pebbles and partly paved with flag stones, but the smaller platforms, puke and nohoraga, are all empty.

Emory's studies (2, 3, 4, 5) have clearly demonstrated the existence of two distinct though basically related marae types in the Tuamotus. The first one found in the Western part of the group is closely related to the Tahitian inland marae, and its main features are as follows:—

• The court is marked only with stone uprights or not at all;
• The ahu platform seldom exceeds the height of 2 feet, the width of 5 feet and the length of 25 feet; and
• The ahu uprights are only three and placed behind the platform.

The marae type found in the Eastern part of the group differs in all these respects (for illustrations see Emory, 2, page 5 and 6):—

• The court is enclosed by ridges of pebbles;
• The dimensions of the ahu platform are much greater; and
• The ahu uprights are more than three and placed on the platform.

If we compare Marae Tefarateuteu with these two types we shall find that it does not strictly conform to either one, but resembles in some respects the Western type and in others the Eastern type. The four courts A, B, C, D, are all enclosed by ridges of coral pebbles as in the Eastern Tuamotus, whereas the fifth court E like in the Western Tuamotus is not and certainly never was enclosed in this way. As to the size of the ahu platforms they conform to the Western type, but the arrangement of the ahu uprights again is a compromise, as far as there are only three uprights in accordance with the Western pattern but placed on top of the platform as in the Eastern atolls. (See Plate II, fig. B - E.)

It is therefore certainly justifiable to regard this marae as the missing link in the evolution from the Western to the Eastern type, which until now has seemed so unduly - 225 abrupt. 1 This intermediate position seems the more natural as Takume geographically is situated in the middle of the group between the two extreme cultural sub-areas. The only fact that may weaken this reasoning is of course that it seems based on the existence of one single marae compound, and it can rightly be asked whether this is not an isolated case of local experimentation without further significance. It seems, however, not to be so. According to Te Iho a Te Page many of the maraes on Takume now destroyed had the same peculiar features and if we go over the detailed descriptions made by Emory (2, 3) and study them in the new light now shed on the Tuamotuan marae forms, we shall find two maraes with three uprights on the ahu, Marae Mahina-i-te-ata on Takaroa and Marae Maruata on Hao (Emory, 2, page 32, fig. 16a and page 53, fig. 41f), and two maraes, Mahina-i-te-ata and Marae Tuagiagi on Takaroa (Emory, 2, page 32, fig. 16a and page 33, fig. 18), with ridges of pebbles enclosing the courts in spite of the fact that they otherwise conform to the Western type. Significantly enough both Takaroa and Hao are like Takume and Raroia situated in the middle of the group forming a natural area for transformation and change.

Some other features of Marae Tefarateuteu have until now not been found elsewhere in the group and must therefore be regarded as purely local variations, very natural in a transitional and experimental stage. The most noteworthy are the following:—

1.—A large number of uprights, at least 25 out of 45, both on the platforms and along the sides of the courts, are pointed. (See Plate II, fig. 1–12.) Usually the Tuamotuan marae uprights are roughly rectangular and only on Fagatau do there exist uprights shaped in human forms with heads and short arms.

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PLATE I MARAE TEFARATEUTEU

Illustration

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PLATE II DETAILS

Illustration

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2.—The small platforms on court A have an extra upright in front of them at a distance of 5 to 10 inches. (See Plate II, fig. Aa-c.) The complete absence of an ahu on this court is also interesting. It could be that there originally existed one which has been destroyed, but nothing proves this, and besides, the arrangement of the two opposite rows of symmetrically placed platforms excludes this possibility. A similar arrangement of only small platforms seems to have existed on Tepoto. (Emory, 3, page 15.)

3.—The small platform E2 with its single upright is turned away from the ahu platform. Invariably in the Tuamotus this is so only when the small patforms are placed in front of it, but turned towards the ahu platform when they are situated on the court. This arrangement is very natural as the small platforms immediately in front of the ahu were used for depositing offerings and the platforms on the court simply were sitting places (with the upright as a backrest) for the chiefs and priests. The unique position of the platform E2 is therefore difficult to explain. It may indicate the former existence of still another court west of court E, but not the slightest trace can be found.

4.—The simple fact that there are as many as five courts in the compound is in itself very remarkable. Double and in rare cases triple maraes are found throughout the group but no aggregate like Marae Tefarateuteu is known from any other atoll.

Still another peculiar feature which seems to have a wider implication must finally be noted. The compound is situated on the border of a wave-like deposit of coral stones which covers the whole space between Marae Tefarateuteu and the sea, and this is certainly an unusual location for a marae. My informant's explanation is that the marae was originally built on a smooth and sandy ground, which later was partially covered by coral pebbles deposited by a cyclonic tidal wave, after which the marae was reconstructed. This seems very likely and explains well why courts A, B, C, D, which are on the sea-side, have ridges of pebbles, but court E outside the coral stone field have not.

If this explanation is correct we have also a way of determining the minimum age of the marae, as the cyclonic wave which deposited the layer of coral stones, according to reliable native traditions, occurred fourteen generations ago. - 229 Even if the innovations in the marae form were made at this relatively late event—which is not at all a necessary conclusion, as the marae is mentioned in chants from a still older period and evidently is of very old age—there was still time enough for the new type to spread to the Eastern atolls and there develop further. Chronologically, it seems therefore perfectly possible that Marae Tefarateuteu really is the evolutionary link between Western and Eastern Tuamotus which its structural features so strongly suggest.

REFERENCES.

• 1. SEURAT, L. G.: “Les marae des îles orientales de l'archipel des Tuamotu.” L'Anthropologie. 16.475–84, Paris, 1905.
• 2. EMORY, K. P.: “Tuamotuan Stone Structures.” Bernice P. Bishop Museum Bulletin 118. Honolulu, 1934.
• 3. — — “Tuamotuan Religious Structures and Ceremonies.” Bernice P. Bishop Museum Bulletin 191. Honolulu, 1947.
• 4. — — “Archaeology of Mangareva and Neighbouring Atolls.” Bernice P. Bishop Museum Bulletin 163. Honolulu, 1939.
• 5. — — “Polynesian Stone Remains.” Studies in the Anthropology of Oceania and Asia. Peabody Museum Papers. 20.9–21, 1943.
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