Victoria Veriamo a Huki a Parapara, also known as Viriamo (c. 1840 – c. 1940), was one of the last surviving indigenous women of Easter Island to have been tattooed using traditional practices, along with Ana Eva Hei. She was a cultural informant who shared information about indigenous Rapa Nui culture with European visitors, the same knowledge she also shared with her son Juan Tepano, who in turn also functioned as a cultural informant.
Viriamo | |
---|---|
Viriamo c. 1914-1915 | |
Born | c. 1840 Rapa Nui |
Died | c. 1940 Rapa Nui |
Occupation | Cultural leader |
Known for | One of the last tattooed people of Rapa Nui |
Tattoos
The artist who created the designs on Viriamo's face and body was likely to have been Tomanika Vaka Tuku One, who was also a catechist.:35 With geometric stripes on her forehead and an adze-like design on her cheek, Viriamo's body was also decorated.:36 Her back was decorated with the ao motif, which symbolised a paddle.
The tattoos of the Rapa Nui people were a subject of research by European colonisers and Viriamo's body art was recorded by several people. It is likely that she is the 'chefess' recorded by Julien Viaud in his writings.:36 Her back tattoos were drawn by J. Linton Palmer in 1853.:36 Photographs of her were published in The Mystery of Easter Island by Katherine Routledge.
Legacy
By 1930, Viriamo and Ana Eva Hei were the only two people on Rapa Nui to have traditional tattoos.
When Alfred Métraux visited the island in 1941, Viriamo was "the only living person" to have "witnessed the functioning of the ancient culture". As a cultural informant, she shared information about the island's indigenous culture, including tangata manu (a bird man cult), with visitors. She also shared information about indigenous deities, such as Tare and Rapahango.
Personal life
Viriamo was born close to the Rano Raraku quarry. She was married three times. Her second husband was Vaka Ariki, with whom she had five children.:39 A son from her third marriage was cultural informant Juan Tepano.:39 Tepano told Métraux on his visit that much of his knowledge that he shared came from his mother, who at that time could no longer speak.
References
- Kaeppler, Adrienne L. (2018). The Iconic Tattooed Man of Easter Island: An Illustrated Life. Santa Monica, CA: EISP Foundation Mana Press. ISBN 978-1-7324952-0-3.
- "Sacred Skin: Easter Island Ink". Lars Krutak. 2012-11-23. Retrieved 2024-09-30.
- "The Mystery of Easter Island". digital.library.upenn.edu. Retrieved 2024-09-30.
- A., J. C. (1941). "Review of Ethnology o Easter Island". The Journal of the Polynesian Society. 50 (1(197)): 48–51. ISSN 0032-4000. JSTOR 20702862.
- Van Tilburg, Jo Anne. "Mechanics, logistics and economics of transporting Easter Island (Rapa Nui) statues." (1996).
- Rapa Nui Journal. Georgia Lee. 1993. p. 113.
- Museum, Bernice Pauahi Bishop (1971). Bernice P. Bishop Museum Bulletin. Bishop Museum Press. p. 317.
- Howes, Hilary; Jones, Tristen; Spriggs, Matthew (2022-06-21). Uncovering Pacific Pasts: Histories of Archaeology in Oceania. ANU Press. ISBN 978-1-76046-487-5.
- Kjellgren, Eric (2001). Splendid Isolation: Art of Easter Island. p. 30.
- Bulamah, Rodrigo (2017-07-27), "Alfred Métraux: Between Ethnography and Applied Knowledge", Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Latin American History, doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199366439.013.452, ISBN 978-0-19-936643-9, retrieved 2024-09-30
External links
- Media related to Viriamo at Wikimedia Commons
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