Post #644415 by bigbrotiki on Tue, Jul 17, 2012 4:14 PM

Hottiki, I have greatly enjoyed your Tiki sleuthing and related posts, but I cannot follow you on either of your two comparisons. The features of Lapu Rockers' carving differ in major parts from the O.A. and Denver Motel Tiki:

For one, both have mouths, his carving doesn't. The other feature is the crossed hands across the belly, a typical Marquesan tradition. The arms-on-the-side stance point to a Hawaiian origin. I don't think Lapu's guy is based on any restaurant Tiki, but is either a tourist item from Hawaii, or a hobby Tiki inspired by old Hawaiian god figures. This one came to mind:

...but while it is similar in overall spirit, it differs in many details.
This bad boy has a similar expression with his elongated jaw...

...but is otherwise much different and more stylized.
Also, the stocky stature of Lapu's idol could be compared to this mean mother:

...but again no close match. So my vote is that this is a one-off, personal interpretation of a Hawaiian Akua. It looks like he is wearing a minimalist headdress.

What is a bit confusing also is the wordplay at the end of the dedication: "...SweeTii"
"Ti'i" is the TAHITIAN version of the Hawaiian "Ki'i", which are both used like the Marquesan and Maori "Tiki"