Audio commentary by Tory Laitila, Curator of Textiles and Historic Arts of Hawaiʻi, Honolulu Museum of Art 

Transcription of audio:

When I look at the portrait of Queen Lili’uokalani, and the 'ahu 'ula, I see regalia and symbols of power. The 'ahu 'ula, the feather cape, comes from 'ahu, which translates as a garment for the upper body, and 'ula, meaning red or sacred or regal, dealing with the high chiefs and gods. And it is traditional Hawaiian feather work. They come from birds which fly above us in the heavens, so you also have that connotation. But yellow was the hardest to collect, and so that imbues more mana or power to this 'ahu 'ula.  An 'ahu 'ula is comprised of thousands of feathers. It can take generations for an 'ahu 'ula to be made. Looking at the portrait of Queen Lili’uokalani, she is wearing her black ribbon dress in the portrait, which was worn to Queen Victoria's Jubilee in 1887, with honors of the Hawaiian Kingdom, specifically the Royal Order of Kalākaua, with a breast badge and sash. She wears the symbols of Hawaiʻi  translated into European honors. The Hawaiian Kingdom was quick to adapt, and saw that other world powers had honor systems and the kingdom developed its own to show that Hawaiʻi  was on equal footing in this worldwide community of nations and monarchs.

– My name is Tory Laitila. I am the curator of textiles and historic arts of Hawaiʻi  at the Honolulu Museum of Art.