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Palaoa

Sperm Whale

Whaling was an integral part of the development of many countries in the early nineteenth century. Whale blubber produced oil that lit the lamps and greased the machines of many of the most “modern” inventions of the time. It was said that whale oil was the illumination and lubrication of the Industrial Revolution. As the traditional hunting grounds of the Atlantic began to be fished out, whalers turned to the plentiful waters of the Pacific. Some of the most bountiful harvesting grounds were found off the coast of Japan. Japan’s ports however, were closed to foreign vessels, and with these whaling fleets needing a place to dock in order to replenish supplies, repair the ships and rest the crews, Hawai‘i became a perfect destination.

Whalers began arriving in Hawai‘i in 1819, and by 1822 over sixty ships were docking annually. This was the same period in which the Calvinist missionaries arrived in Hawai‘i and the two groups had vastly differing ideas about how these port towns should be run. The troubles at first were relatively minor but with the missionaries gaining more influence with the ali‘i nui, and laws against the sale of liquor and the taking of women being enforced, serious battles ensued. Lāhainā and Honolulu both saw several whaler uprisings and the Baldwin family home in Lāhainā was even the target of cannon fire from an angry ship captain.

By 1846, the number of whaling ships arriving in Hawai‘i had reached an astounding 596 and what had begun as a nuisance was now a major problem that was bringing much conflict to Hawai‘i. Sailors were the most prolific carriers of the diseases that seemed to spread through the Hawaiian population like wildfire, but the sailors also were carriers of another powerful force that would work to significantly redistribute resources in the islands. With the massive influx of people, and their money, a commercial market was born. The sailors, and their ships needed supplies, food, tools, liquor and many more commodities that often newly arrived “businessmen” were ready to supply. Hawai‘i became a “gold rush” town that attracted people of all types. Some of the most influential businesses in modern Hawaiian history got their start from the capitalist opportunities of this period. Hawai‘i also saw the loss of young Hawaiian men who traveled aboard these ships to the northwest coast of America and other destinations, never to return.

Prior to the arrival of whaling crews, Kānaka Maoli had a much different relationship to the whale. Whale ivory that washed ashore was considered sacred. One of the most powerful symbols of status was the whale tooth lei or lei niho palaoa. The beaches of Kualoa on O‘ahu were a major collection point for whale ivory and as such this ‘āina was considered the spot to control in order to possess all of O‘ahu.

The whale at Bishop Museum, unlike those that were caught for their oil, is actually a sperm whale. It was the first specimen installed in Hawaiian Hall in December of 1901 and has hung there ever since. It is over 55 feet long and weighs over two tons.

Location: Bishop Museum; Hawaiian Hall

Video

Hamumu the Whale Rider Video
Koholā Lele, Leaping Whale

Documents

Hawaiian Sailors

Images

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© Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum 2020

Kai Akea > Palaoa > Hamumu the Whale Rider

The story of Hamumu the Whale Rider as told by Kealoha Kelekolio.

Kai Akea > Palaoa > Koholā Lele, Leaping Whale

Hawai‘i’s Native Seamen and their Legacy, A Native Hawaiian Seaman’s Arctic Whaling Story

based on “He Moolelo Walohia, ka noho pio ana iwaena o ka Lahui Naguru ma Alika! Ka ike hou ana i ka aina!” Written by Charles Edward Kealoha and published in Ka Lahui Hawaii November 8th and 15th, 1877.

Image from Bishop Museum Archives, Honolulu, Hawaii. Images are not to be re-used without permission.

Destruction of the arctic whaling fleet; . Barks Arctic and Progress receiving crews of the wrecked and abandoned ships south of Ice Cape. September 1871.

Lithograph.

From: Harper’s Weekly.

Collection: Hawaii Maritime Center Collection
Call Number: HMC. Fishing. Whaling.
Location: Bishop Museum Archives

Image from Bishop Museum Archives, Honolulu, Hawaii. Images are not to be re-used without permission.

Palaoa ku‘i (ivory medicine pounder) used by Kamehameha I.

Elephant ivory.

Photographer: Seth Joel

From: Rose, Roger. “Hawai‘i: The Royal Isles.” Honolulu: Bishop Museum Press, 1980, page 13, no. 123.

Image from Bishop Museum Archives, Honolulu, Hawaii. Images are not to be re-used without permission.

The Spermaceti Whale. ca. 1840 Hand colored engraving by J. Stewart, from: Sir William Jardine. The Naturalist’s Library. London: Samuel Highley, 1840, plate 9. Holt Collecton.

Call Number: Art. Fishing. Whaling.

Image from Bishop Museum Archives, Honolulu, Hawaii. Images are not to be re-used without permission.

 

The tropic bird that soars to the cliff of Līloa
Said of a chief of high rank*

Hawaiian society under the ‘Aikapu system was stratified according to rank. An individual’s rank was not determined by wealth or gender, but by genealogy. Those of the highest rank could trace their genealogy all the way back to the beginning of time, to the very first organism to inhabit the earth, even to the primordial darkness preceding all life. These genealogies were recorded in chants called ko‘ihonua that glorified Ali‘i bloodlines, ancestors, and their decedents.

Ali‘i, like other strata of Hawaiian society, were not all of similar rank. The highest Ali‘i were the Mō‘ī, or supreme rulers. They were often nī‘aupi‘o chiefs, having being conceived through the union of high ranking siblings. These nī‘aupi‘o chiefs were considered to be Akua (Gods) on earth, and as such, they had to keep strict kapu, or taboos, least the welfare of their people and lands be compromised. Also, because ruling was a kuleana (responsibility, right), many chiefs would go to great lengths to ensure their kapu were kept. For example, for those whose kapu forbade their shadow falling on another human, they would often leave their kauhale (housing complex) only after the sun had gone down so that their shadow could not be cast. Ruling in Hawai‘i was not just about luxury, as the Mō‘ī had an inter-dependent relationship with the maka‘āinana. The commoners provided the resources that the Mō‘ī would use to mālama their people and the Gods.

There might be one Ali‘i Nui ruling over an entire island, or several each with their own moku (large land division within an island). Lesser Ali‘i, known as kaukau ali‘i might rule over an ahupua‘a, smaller land division, or an ‘ili, an even smaller land division within an ahupua‘a. Unlike the Ali‘i Nui, the Kaukau Ali‘i often did not have strict kapu. In fact, many Kaukau Ali‘i were not of much higher rank than the konohiki, or resource managers, who dealt directly with the maka‘āinana (common people).

One important symbol of rank for the highest Ali‘i was the lei niho palaoa, a whale tooth pendant. The carved hook pendant is strung on thousands of finely braided strands of human hair. These significant lei were worn by Ali‘i of both genders. These whale teeth were collected from carcass that would wash ashore at specific places in the islands. Theses wahi pana (sacred places) were considered important areas to control in order to have access to the mana that these items brought. Control over these spots, like Kualoa on O‘ahu, might mean control over the entire island.

* Pukui, Mary Kawena. `Olelo no`eau: Hawaiian Proverbs & Poetical Sayings. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication 71. no.1750, p188. Honolulu. Bishop Museum Press, 1983.

Location: Bishop Museum

Image from Bishop Museum Archives, Honolulu, Hawaii. Images are not to be re-used without permission.

Sketch of Whaling. n.d.

Collection: Hawaii Maritime Center Collection
Call Number: HMC. Fishing. Whaling. [SP 202132]
Accession Number: HMC 1990.7