Earth Paints and Dye

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14.6 Earth Paints and Dye

The Rotokas people have been blessed with a “safe” volcano which, to a large degree, is responsible for a variety of natural sources of colored earth powder. The name “Rotokas” can be traced to one of the main earth paints as already explained. This natural resource was not only used by the people themselves, but also it was traded in exchanges with other Bougainville and Buka peoples. Red earth—Rasiva The red earth powder known locally as rasiva roto in the Pipipaia dialect and on the coast was not easy to come by and required a group effort to produce. Today, it is easier to buy red paint at the hardware counter in Arawa. Nonetheless, the description of its preparation was given with enthusiasm and pride. When it was decided that the time had come to prepare rasiva, a period for working collectively on the project was scheduled. This was usually after all garden crops were in and no other pressing village work was to be completed. This meant that all of the villagers could devote themselves to the project. Although they worked together collecting the raw material, they would fire their own batches on separate days, one family’s batch on one day and another’s batch on the next, etc. Rasiva being removed onto banana leaf to be “packaged” The sources of the red earth are all near the village of Togarao. The main body of red mud tuvua is in a narrow gulley behind and below the village. The area was marked off so that each clan would have its own lot or “room” tugi. No one was allowed to take the red mud from another clan’s apportioned lot. The red mud itself is the sediment produced from the ferrous hydroxide warm springs. This mud was scooped up from the warm spring area with coconut shells and put into a settlement basin or pit. The thick sediment was then gathered and placed on leaf baskets constructed from wild banana leaves tego. These leaf bundles were then placed on long racks made of poles. It normally took about two months, during which the leaves began to rot. Having deteriorated, the wild banana leaf wrapping was replaced by the red leaves of the uveo tree. This tree has small leaves when fully grown, but the leaves are large and red when it is still the size of a shrub. While this was taking place, the people would gather the necessary firewood and construct their sheds in which to “fire” the earth powder. Each clan had its own shed and pit in which to heat the rasiva. A small fire was started in the bottom of the pit. Above this, the firewood was stacked in the shape of a rack. The bundles of dried red mud were then placed on top of the rack. The small fire ignited the rack, and the intense fire baked or “cooked” kasi the mud. When sufficiently fired, the mud would turn to a rich red color. If not, the color was more of an orange. This material was then refired using strips of bamboo for heat until it also attained a deep red color. When the firing process was completed, the deep red powder most likely ferric oxide, that weather- resistant paint base used on the traditional red barns in the U.S.A. was packed into bamboo tubes and sold in bundles of five. Until around 1969, the price of one tube was 50 toea .50 U.S.. One tube also bought a piece 190 of cloth varoa; five tubes bought an ax torara, and ten tubes bought a large saucepan pitokava. The red paint was used by coastal people to “paint” their canoes but by the Rotokas for decorating their hair when mixed with coconut oil. All three men who explained the process to us made a point of the great effort that was put into producing this red earth powder. It is probably for this reason that it is no longer made today. The source of the rasiva is certainly still producing. Of all the colored earth powders, this is the only one which requires firing. Red earth—Oovato This red earth powder known as ovana in the Teop language is found in the Kakaropaia area. It requires only sun drying. After being cleaned, dried, and packaged in leaf bundles, it is traded or sold. Red-brown earth—Raoveto The Kakaropaia area situated near the Red River also yields this natural earth paint. Once it is sun-dried, the powder takes on a red–to–brown color. The powder has a natural shine to it. This earth powder is known as one in the Teop language. Black earth—Siigaato When examining the source of this earth paint, I had the feeling that it was coal in the making. There is a pocket of it located above the village of Togarao about 20 minutes’ walk away. When mixed with coconut oil, this black earth will glisten in the sun. It is a favorite body and hair cosmetic. It is known as sina by the Teop people. White clay—Kovirea or Verakoa This earth paint is cut out of the sides of stream banks. It is not traded out of the area, but used by the Rotokas people themselves for body decoration and for “painting” the planks of their houses. It will remain white for many years. The application is made by smearing the moist clay on with the hands. Red clay—Kukupira This earth substance was traded, but not as a paint base. It has the texture necessary of a clay to harden properly when fired and was used for smoking pipes and saucepans. The clay was traded to the coastal people who made these items. It is red in color and was collected from the Togarao area. Gray earth—Pioto This earth material has been mentioned several times already in connection with medicine, pig hunting, and house painting. It is a useful substance and readily available. There is one warm spring which is flowing continuously. From this effluence, the pioto precipitates out as a yellowish-gray sediment. To collect it en masse, the stream below the spring is blocked and the sediment allowed to collect over a larger area. This is then scooped out, dried, and placed in bamboo tubes. It is known as vioe in the Teop area and desired because of its value as a medicine. Yellow sulfur Although I’ve never seen this substance used for decoration, I do know that the bright yellow, crystalline sulfur collected from fumaroles atop Mt. Balbi was used to cure grille ringworm. It was no doubt too difficult to transport and possibly too caustic to use as a decorative powder when crushed. Black charcoal—Eropa It has already been mentioned that crushed charcoal mixed with coconut oil is smeared on the hair especially by Upe boys with long hair. It is also used dry to blacken the designs etched into arrow shafts [see the previous section]. Purple dye—Kapokarito This plant dye is obtained from the roots of the kapokarito tree. It is dug out of the ground where it has not been exposed to sunlight. The roots were scraped and the pieces gathered and placed in a container with water and the material to be dyed. 191 Leaves used to construct the Upe hats were dyed with this purple coloring. Also a rattan belt worn only by women was dyed with kapokarito. The rattan had patterns marked out by smaller strips of vine criss-crossing and fastened in place. The rattan belt with pattern and dye were placed in a bamboo tube and heated over a fire. After a period of time, the belt was removed and the strips of vine removed. A pattern resulted where the dye had not been allowed to permeate the rattan. Apparently, this belt was not infrequently a source of fights among the men and women for a reason not explained. It was known as veupa iro stained belt. Purple dye—carbon paper Some ingenious person discovered that by boiling discarded pieces of carbon paper, a purple-to-black stain would result. The materials, usually leaf strips for mat weaving, are placed in the boiling water with the carbon paper. The different colors of carbon paper will obviously yield different shades of the dye. It appears to be a fairly permanent dye.

14.7 Contemporary Drawings and Paintings