Ka La'Au
Unknown Artist
19th century
Medium
Wood (Kauila?)
Dimensions
L. 83.1 cm (32-11/16 in.); Diam. at center: 3.7 cm (1-7/16 in.); Diam. at ends: 2.8 cm (1-1/16 in.)
Classification
Idiophone-Concussion
Culture
Hawaiian
Department
Musical Instruments
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889
Accession Number
89.4.739
Art Historical Context
Behold the *Ka La'Au*, a striking 19th-century Hawaiian musical instrument from the Metropolitan Museum Art's Crosby Brown Collection. Crafted from dense kauila wood—a rare, resonant hardwood native to Hawai'i—this idiophone-concussion device measures an elegant 83.1 cm in length, tapering from 3.7 cm at its center to 2.8 cm at the ends. smooth, cylindrical form exemplifies masterful woodworking, polished to a subtle sheen that highlights the wood's natural grain and durability. In traditional Hawaiian culture, the *ka la'au* (meaning "the wood") served as a rhythmic clapper, struck together ...