Niuean Hiapo with Floral Designs and Fringing

A small Hiapo, Niue. Intricate floral designs in black on a light brown ground. Delicate fringing. Samoans are said to have introduced Niueans when they were brought over as missionaries with Captain cook in 1774. The distinctive fine lines seen in Niuean Hiapo emerged in the late 1880s. The production of Hiapo in Niue dramatically declined in the late nineteenth century. Height 23.62 in., width 51.57 in.