Collecting Surfer Neckwear

Not sure how many here know this but the original tiki was was a carved stone image of Tiki, the first man in Polynesian mytholgy. In Maori and other Polynesian cultures it common to wear a small carved image of Tiki around the neck. Other images include Maui's fish hook, various spritual symbols like the spiral, sea animals and miniature tools carved in wood, bone, shell and stone. They are all generaly refered to as tikis in surfer culture. I think this is how the word tiki was transefered to all carved images in Polynesia.
I have been collecting them uncontiously for decades and never realized what I had until I looked at them all togther for a video project I am working on. I have seen small Polynesian god images too. And since I have limited space and it is wearable art, I have decided to concentrate on collecting only these tikis necklaces (including shell like puka). Anyone else collecting the original wearable tikis?
Here are some pics of what I'm talkinbout
link here

[ Edited by: nuimaleko 2005-07-13 03:28 ]

[ Edited by: Humuhumu - Fixed overly-long link - 2005-07-14 00:05 ]

What's a tiki?

where's Polynesia place??

On 2005-06-25 05:20, nuimaleko wrote:
original wearable tikis?

Photo and awesome Tiki costume compliments of
Maui Tiki

Hi Nuimaleko
Not vintage, but I think even better, Benzarts Tikis are just amazing. I would collect them, but they are hard to get.

Oh I don't plan to collect just vintage, I love new stuff too. Modern tiki amulet carvers and casters are doing wondeful things.
I am just collecting it for me, not for some future value or to take to shows or anything.
I really love the Moari inspired stuff coming out of New Zealand best

On 2005-06-25 05:57, finkdaddy wrote:
What's a tiki?

I don't know, but I have a feeling that this place is some sort of central meeting place for them. Quiet, there could be some here now...

Love that Maui tiki costume. Next time paint your face black and that thing will really come to life.

I Googled Benzarts Tikis, but could not find any info.

[ Edited by: nuimaleko 2005-07-09 04:32 ]

Nuimelako, I really Love a lot of your "wearable Art". Looks like mostly Maori who in my estimation are very advanced carvers and artists. Check my website for a meager showing of some of my art. My son built the pages and has an update that he did for a project in college, in a class that finished months ago. Still not up yet but it will have many more pictures. In the meantime feel free to email me with any ?'s you may have. [email protected]

Thanks, glad somebody looked at it. I remember puka shells and medalions were popular in the late 60s and early seventies and then went out of fashion. I just hung on to some of mine from that time and now, here they are popular again, especialy with surfers, skate boarders, ect. I have to say the Moari stuff is the best quality and the most artistic. I love the translusancy of the jade or greenstone ones and the graphic look of the white bone.
I really like your stuff too.

[ Edited by: nuimaleko 2005-07-10 09:24 ]

[ Edited by: nuimaleko 2005-07-14 01:54 ]

Yes, I like your hei tiki from New Zealand, the first one on your photo album. I also read somewhere a while back, that stone tikis from the Marquesas (Fatu Hiva, Nuku Hiva, etc) Islands were made from stone, used as weights for their fishing nets. If the net brought a lot of food, the tiki weight was taken off each night and worn for safety/ good luck. I like to think of my necklaces like they've served some purpose decades ago, and now we get to wear them... by the way, I carve my necklaces from drift wood that could be very old, or 6 months old? http://www.tikitony.com

I love the driftwood carvings from tony..
I cant figure how some of you guys carve em so small.

Yes that is Tiki, the first man, the ultimate ancestor figure.
I don't know how all carved representaions came to be called after him. (I beleive it must be some misunderstanding on the part of westerners. It is like us calling all carved representations Adam. Do you think modern Polynesians aspire to an Adam liftyle?)
I read that the jade Tiki image was rare until whalers expressed an interest in them as trade items and Moari sculptures started churning them out(so to speak,I know how hard greenstone is to carve)carving up their cerimonial adzes (as pictured also) to make them.
Since any carved representation is called a tiki (does not have to be a god)all of the sea animals and even the fish hooks can be correctly called tikis. The spiritual symbols, like the spirals, twists and discs must have a different Moari name.
I love the one of yours pictured.
The ones I own are the ones on the glass bottles. It allows me to display both my colored glass bottle and tiki collections at one time
Tikis need to be small to be worn practicly. As I wrote in the caption under my Maui Fish Hook. It is so big you could easily put your or someone elses eye out with it. LOL

[ Edited by: nuimaleko 2005-07-14 01:51 ]

[ Edited by: nuimaleko 2005-07-14 01:56 ]

Numaleko,

I love your enthusiasm, but the more I read you're posts, the more confused-er I get...

I thought the fourth one looked like a tomato worm and I wanted to smash it.

But those other ones look pretty cool.