Two Old Tiki Carvings, Any History? - General Tiki

D Dr_rous Member Joined: Jun 03, 2002 Posts: 3	D Dr_rous Posted posted on Wed, Apr 6, 2005 4:37 PM You're correct. The second tiki was carved from the trunk of a Hawaiian tree fern. These are extremely rare nowadays because 1) Tree ferns are now protected in Hawaii, so there's no material to carve new tikis, and 2) old tree fern tikis are hard to find because tree fern wood is highly biodegradable. When I was a kid in S. CA, we had one such tiki in the backyard by the pool. It was acquired in the early sixties, and I watched it slowly decompose over the next decade, sadly oblivious to its potential future value. By the latter 70s, it was little more than a mouldering log. I suggest you protect yours from the elements and especially from sowbugs and earwigs, who had a 15 year luau in ours.

You're correct. The second tiki was carved from the trunk of a Hawaiian tree fern. These are extremely rare nowadays because 1) Tree ferns are now protected in Hawaii, so there's no material to carve new tikis, and 2) old tree fern tikis are hard to find because tree fern wood is highly biodegradable. When I was a kid in S. CA, we had one such tiki in the backyard by the pool. It was acquired in the early sixties, and I watched it slowly decompose over the next decade, sadly oblivious to its potential future value. By the latter 70s, it was little more than a mouldering log. I suggest you protect yours from the elements and especially from sowbugs and earwigs, who had a 15 year luau in ours.

Post #151366 by Dr_rous on Wed, Apr 6, 2005 4:37 PM