Samoan ʻIe Toga (Fine Mat)
Treasured fine mat of Samoa, woven from the thinnest strips of pandanus leaf by senior women and softened, oiled and polished until it gleams. The ʻie toga is the highest form of Samoan wealth, exchanged at weddings, funerals, title-bestowals and political occasions in the ceremonial economy of fa'alavelave, where it is always presented together with fine goods. The oldest mats are given names and genealogies, handed down through generations and counted among the most sacred possessions of the aiga, and a family's honour and standing are measured in the size and age of its store of fine mats.