Feather Cloak

From card: "Foundation network of olona to which is attached by fine threads the feathers of native Hawaiian birds in red, black, and yellow feathers. Yellow feathers are obtained from the o'o bird, a small tuft being obtained from each shoulder. Black feathers are from the same bird -head and back. Collected by Commodore John H. Aulick from King Kamehameha III in 1841; formerly belonged to Chief Kekuakalani [a.k.a. Keaoua Kekua-o-kalani] and was taken off his body on the battlefield in 1819 [ca. December 18, 1819, the Battle of Kuamo'o; Kekuaokalani was defeated and his cloak was taken as a battle prize for his opponent King Liholiho (Kamehameha II)]; deposited in S.I. by Aulick's daughter-in-law, Mary Isabel Robeson [Mary Isabel Ogston Aulick Robeson], in the name of her son, Richmond Ogerton [sic, should be Ogston] Aulick; made a gift to the S.I. in 1966 by her [daughter and] heir, Ethel Maxwell [Robeson] Sterling [1872-1965], deceased. See Brigham, Hawaiian Feather Work, Vol. 1, 1899, p. 68."

Brigham identifies this as a cloak or ahuula of o'o and iiwi feathers. Cervical border (23 inches) of black and yellow o'o; front edges red (iiwi feathers), black and yellow. Length, 48 inches; base, 138 inches. The more correct name for Kekuakalani is Ka-iwi-kuamo'o-kekuaokalani, per William Kuamo'o, a great-great-grandson of his, 2006. See Anthropology Collections Lab Accession file for additional information.

This cloak had also been listed previously as a "deposit" ( loan?), under Catalogue No. 8908, Accession No. 1675, recorded in the Anthropology catalogue ledger book in Oct. 6, 1869 as from John H. Aulick.

Some documentation for this cloak is filed in the National Anthropological Archives, see: Smithsonian Department of Anthropology Records 1877-1980: Series 17, Division of Ethnology, manuscript and pamphlet files: Box 20, Folder 274, "Hawaiian Islands". A copy of this material is filed in the Anthropology Collections Lab accession file for this collection.

Ahu'ula (red shoulder covering), feathered cloak, olona fiber (Touchardia latifolia), red feathers from 'i'iwi (Scarlet Hawaiian Honeycreeper, Vestiaria coccinea) and yellow feathers from 'o'o (Hawaii Oo, Moho nobilis).

Cloak was on display in Anthropology exhibit in National Museum of Natural History, Exhibit Hall 8, section on Peoples and Cultures of Oceania, Case 45 "Old Hawaii", 1962 - 1981. Cloak was on display in National Museum of Natural History exhibit "Magnificent Voyagers: The U.S. Exploring Expedition 1838-1842", November 14, 1985 – November 9, 1986. Cloak was on display in National Museum of Natural History exhibit "Na Mea Makamae o Hawai'i - Hawaiian Treasures", 2004-2005. Cloak was lent for the exhibit "Royal Hawaiian Featherwork: Na Hulu Ali'i".to the de Young Museum, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF) for exhibit August 29, 2015 - Feb. 28, 2016 and to LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art), for exhibit May 23 - August 7, 2016. Cloak on display in National Museum of Natural History exhibit "Objects of Wonder", 2017 - 2019. Exhibit label notes: Hawaiian chiefs wore spectacular feathered capes, crested helmets, and cloaks known as 'ahu'ula (red shoulder coverings). These garments communicated the owner's high status, and also protected the wearer from harm: priests chanted prayers into the cloaks as they attached bundles of feathers to the netted olonā fiber backing. The red color from 'I'iwi was associated with Hawaiian gods, making their feathers very valuable.

Illus. p. 189 and 191 in Lee, Erika, Joshua A. Bell, Kalewa Correa, Chelsea R. Cozad, Lonnie G. Bunch, Lawrence-Minh Bùi Davis, Saisha Grayson, et al. 2023. Smithsonian Asian Pacific American History, Art, and Culture in 101 Objects. Edited by Theodore S. Gonzalves. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Books, in association with the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center.

23 Dec 2025

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