Na Kamaho‘oki‘ipohakukai. 
The Maritime Rock Artists of Hawai ‘i.

Captain Richard W. Rogers

Introduction.

            Rock-artwork, chipped, pecked or scrapped into stone, often referred to as petroglyphs are well known and documented in the Hawaiian Islands, particularly on the “Big Island” of Hawai‘i. Amongst the thousands of images carved into rock are a number that show western influence on the Hawaiian culture. These would include Hawaiian words using the English style alphabet, zoo-morphs, including goats and horses as well as themes such as fire-arms and sailing vessels. It is this last category which this paper will deal with in some depth.

            There are some fifty known images carved into rock amongst the Hawaiian Islands that clearly depict sailing vessels of a western design. Sloops (figure 1), with one mast, schooners with two masts (figure 2) and fore and aft sail plans were a common site throughout the islands during the 19^th century, touching at ports and stopping at small villages along all shores.                        

   (figure 1)           (figure 2)

The larger, square rigged vessels such as the two-masted brigs (figure 3) and three-masted ships (figure 4) sailed between the larger ports and throughout the world’s oceans conducting trade, hunting sea mammals or as men-o-war serving the political needs of the sea-going western nations. Many of those vessels employed Hawaiian sailors. Indeed, quite a few were owned by the Hawaiian aristocracy. [1]

(figure 3)                 (figure 4)

            This paper will look at the known rock images of such vessels beginning with the easternmost and moving across the state of Hawaii towards the west. We will be looking not only at the type of vessel portrayed, but consider the location and orientation of the ship-petroglyphs. We will also view some of the details of these images and contemplate what the artist was trying to portray.

Pu‘uloa

            The easternmost known petroglyphs of ships are found at the Pu‘uloa petroglyph field at the Volcanoes National Park. The viewer drives down the Chain of Craters Road to a designated parking area, then walks a few minutes to a wooden viewing walkway surrounding a number of petroglyphs. Proceeding east a short distance takes the viewer to a mound that is entirely crammed with circular images and dots. Down the adjacent rise the density of the petroglyphs diminishes and continues to do so along a trail that goes on for some distance. Along this trail are two ships carved into the pahoehoe lava floor.

            The three masts of the first ship (figure 5) are depicted without any of the sails set. Much of the standing rigging is shown connected to the masts from a very prominent bow sprit and solid hull.

(figure 5)

            Nearby is a less well executed image (figure 6). In this image the rigging is less exacting and the hull is outlined rather than filled. A series of dots depict the aft shrouds and there is a curious feature above the mizzen (furthermost aft) mast that might represent a flag. As rough as the image might appear at first, there are a few features of interest. There is what might be a rudder beneath the hull and within the confines of the hull are lines showing the mizzen mast extending through the deck to the keel, or bottom of the hull. Two vertical lines forward (to the left) of that seem to show bulkheads separating the compartments below the deck.

       (figure 6)

            The conclusions the author makes here are that these two images were done by different artists, both of who had some experience aboard larger ships. The fact that this petroglyph field is quite far inland and nowhere near any type of port indicates that these two sailors were amongst the countless travelers who left personal images in the vicinity and along this particular trail.

Pohue *

            A few miles above South Point, along the western coast of the Big Island, in the district of Ka‘u, is a trail system that incorporates a number of petroglyphs of interest to this paper. [2]  Along the Ka‘u coast is a small long abandoned fishing village at the head of a trail leading southwards. Both the village and the trail have petroglyphs of western vessels incorporated into their rock-artwork.

            The southernmost vessel is located about two miles down the trail from the beach and adjacent village. (figure 7)

                             (figure 7)

            This simple sloop appears to be sailing downwind as viewed from the starboard side. A flag, two sails and a rudder are depicted.

            Walking up the trail, the hiker soon encounters a number of petroglyphs carved onto the flat pahoehoe surfaces. The next two vessels (figures 8 &9) are found amongst a cluster which includes a number of sea-mammal forms and names spelled in Hawaiian.

(figure 8)       (figure 9)

             Figure 8 might be considered a ketch-rigged schooner, as the forward mast if taller than the mizzen and the rudder is aft of the mizzen mast. This image seems to show the two masts, some standing rigging, two bow sprits and a simplified rudder from the port view. Figure 9 is a nicely executed view of a schooner from starboard showing upper works along the gunwale of the hull and sails set to run with the wind. The dolphin striker extending below the bow sprit is also depicted.

            Proceeding along the trail, northward, one is struck by the fact that many good, open flat rock surfaces are ignored at pallets for petroglyphs, which are found only along a narrow corridor, and then in groups or clusters at varying distances apart. Again, the vessels discussed here are but a small fraction of the images in these fields.

            The next image of interest to us (figure 10) is another schooner. This petroglyph was executed with shallow, rather than deep carving. The lines here appear to have been scrapped rather than pecked. Curious starburst looking features are to be noted at the top of each mast, hinting at an early type of running light.

(figure 10)

            On up the trail, amongst a number of Hawaiian names and what appear to be later, rather than earlier 19^th century images is a finely executed image of a brig. Figure 11 shows a vessel with two masts, having three square sails set on each.

(figure 11)

            Amongst a mass of images of a lava rise near a large depression are two simple hulls which may at first appear to be unfinished works. (figure 12) These hulls show but one mast amidships. Of interest is the shallow, shaded portion beneath the hull, an apparent attempt to show the keel, or backbone of the hull.

(figure 12)

            Nearing the vicinity of the ruins of the village complex, now within site of the palm trees and white sand of Pohue Beach is another deeply pecked sloop. (figure 13) The lines of the hull are open at the stern and the fore-sail seem to be pecked in a manner that appears unfinished.

(figure 13)

            The maritime figure closest to the trail head near the beach seems to be the less well executed. Figure 14 is placed upon a boulder, rather than the pahoehoe lava floor. It appears to be but a hull with a line forward within the hull and an upright, then curving aft, line at the bow.

(figure 14)

            The village complex has many stick figures and older looking images throughout the area. A few letters, words and names appear. Three are in English and appear to be from the 20^th century. There are two schooners as well. Figure 15 shows sails set forward and aft as well as a rudder. Figure 16 might be considered a ketch, with the mizzen mast lower than the main. It is more finely executed with gaff rigged sails and the main mast extending down through the deck to the keel.

(figure 15) (figure 16)

            With the exception of the two hulls shown together in figure 12, none of the other images show features that indicate they were done by the same rock artist. Many show details which indicate some working knowledge sailing vessels. The high incidence of Hawaiian names and wildly varying types of images along this trail indicate that these images were placed there as signatures of travelers visiting the Ka‘u district, possibly on a pilgrimage to Kilauea Volcano. The author’s interpretation of these particular petroglyphs is that sailors, former sailors, or the vessels’ owners were amongst the Hawaiian people who “signed in” to the pahoehoe along the Pohue Trail.

Honokohau, Locus 2*

            Between the town of Kailua-Kona and the Keahole Airport is the Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park. Near the southern edge of the park is a petroglyph trail. [3] At the edge of some kiawe trees one encounters a cluster of images of interest to this work.

            This cluster of images (figure 17) has a number of units that show a style of execution which indicate that one artist may have carved the majority of these images.

(figure 17)

            The most prominent image is that of a brig (figure 18). In a somewhat boxy style, this rock artist carved both masts extending to the keel, lower decks and bulkheads within the hull, the rudder, two square sails set on each mast, substantial standing and running rigging, flags flying and a curious starburst feature near the upper part of the rigging, aft.

(figure 18)

Interestingly, this starburst appears to be pointed at an adjacent hull with what appears to be a broken mast (figure 19). If this image indeed shows disarticulated rigging, it may encourage us to view this cluster of petroglyphs in the context of a type of storyboard.

(figure 19)

Four of the five cannon (figure 20) are carved in a manner consistent with them having been done by the same artist who carved the brig, and possibly the broken vessel, nearby.

            (figure 20 (arrows point north))

            A fifth, personified, cannon within the cluster (figure 21) was clearly done by another artist and may not fit directly into the subject at hand. Indeed, some interrupters have likened it to a lobster, rather than being related to its neighboring cannon.

 (figure 21)

The other vessels in this cluster include a sloop incorporated into one of the cannon motifs (figure 22), and two ketchs (figures 23 &24).

(figure 22) (figure 23) (figure 24)

            Viewed as a whole, it is intriguing to contemplate the story this rock artist was telling. One might be compelled to imagine an aging sailor, retired from the sea, sitting in front of his grass house chipping and rubbing these images into the rock while telling his younger neighbors the story of his career as a deep-sea sailor aboard the brig. He may have told of loading the holds with exotic cargoes beginning with the sandalwood from Hawaii and northwest Pacific sea-otter furs to the silks, tea and porcelain he loaded in Canton. He understood the working rigging of his own vessel and was likely apparently with the smaller auxiliary craft that served as tenders to his brig, gathering furs and trading with the smaller outposts in the Pacific Northwest. This sailor was a cannoneer. He was proud of his experience with the ship’s artillery. Judging from the image of the “broken ship”, he might have played a part in some maritime conflict during which another vessel was dismasted.

            If such a story is more than the viewer’s imagination, it appears that our sailor, turned rock artist, traveled far indeed. There is no record of any vessel being dismasted by another in the Pacific during the first half of the 19^th century. Many such events occurred in the Atlantic and Mediterranean and many Hawaiian sailors sailed those seas.

Honokohau, Locus 3

            Stepping now into the kiawe trees towards the beach is another two-masted vessel (figure 25). This schooner, or brigantine shows but two of her sails set. There is a gaff rigged sail on the mizzen mast and her main has her topsail set. A horizontal line on that main mast hints that she may have been square rigged forward, making her a brigantine, but having fore and aft sails would have defined her as a schooner. Her officers may well have swapped sail plans to fit various sailing requirements. Substantial rigging and below-decks features again hint at some knowledge and experience with large vessels by the artist.

(figure 25)

            Interestingly, this vessel was carved atop a “papamu” or Hawaiian game board (not shown) for a game called “konane”. While adequate flat open empty pahoehoe rock is found within yards of the image, this artist chose to superimpose his carving directly upon a location that appears to have had some significance.

            Proceeding now towards the beach, one encounters a petroglyph field that has become inundated with shallow water and swamp grasses. Some of the images have been kept clear by National Park personnel while others have become hidden by greenery. For those images this author was unable to view, I am indebted to the work of Ed and Diane Stasack. [4]

Most of the vessels carved into rock here seem to fit into the same “school” of maritime rock art. If not all done by the same artist, they seem to have at least been influenced by the style in which the masts are usually depicted down to the keel. Each, however, has its own particular features. Figure 26 is the lone sloop in this vicinity. It has a singular line below the bow, possibly indicating the dolphin striker or an anchor cable. The line of the foremast in figure 27 also extends below the waterline. That and figure 28 are schooners with some standing rigging supporting the masts.

(figure 26) (figure 27)

(figure 28)   (figure 29)

            Figures 29 and 30 are topsail schooners, triangular or gaff fore and aft sails with square sails at the head of the foremast.

  (figure 30)                    (figure 31)

            Figure 31 seems to have been personalized with a human figure at the stern. However, this may be another case of one image being superimposed upon another. Figures 30, 31 and 32 utilize fainter lines below the deck. Indeed figure 32 is quite faint altogether.

(figure 32)             (figure 33)

            Figure 33 is a unique depiction of a topsail schooner. A singular rudder feature, double lines for the gunwale and bow, make this image stand out amongst its neighbors.

            While figures 17, 20, 23,24 and 26-33 were adapted from drawings done by Ed and Diane Stasack, the conclusions made by the author as to common artists or schools of art are those of the author and not necessarily shared by other researchers.

            Of interest is the number of Hawaiian names and muskets carved into this field. While only three were in view at the time of this author’s visit in early 2007, a number of others appear in literature on the subject. [5]

(figures 34, 35, 36)

Kekaha

            North of Keahole Point is Kekaha Kai State Park. Within the park boundaries, some two miles above the shoreline, is a blister in the 1801 lava flow with a prominent ahu. Near this ahu is a cluster of petroglyphs which include a number of stick figures and Hawaiian names as well as two schooners. [6]

(figure 37) (figure 38)

            Figure 37 is a port-side view of a topsail schooner. A rudder and some bulkheads appear on the hull. Her rigging is singular in depicting what may be called the “crow’s nest” or lookout platforms on both masts. This was a very important feature aboard whaling vessels. Figure 38 may be to only petroglyph of a vessel showing the subject from a front, or at least angular view, rather that from directly abeam, port or starboard. Both of these images were executed in a fine rubbing manner, rather than the pecking or chipping of their neighbors. They were clearly done by the same artist and may represent the very same vessel.

(figure 39)

            An equal distance as that between the two vessels, towards the summit of Mount Hualalai, is a series of letters executed in precisely the same style (figure 39). It appears that this artist signed his work.

Kapalaoa

            The long abandoned Hawaiian village of Kapalaoa, in North Kona is home to a surprisingly large concentration of petroglyphs of interest to this paper.

(figure 40)

     (figure 41)

The first two maritime images one encounters are a set of schooners. They are found adjacent to one another, figure 40 directly above figure 41. They both have the mizzen mast extending below the gunwale and they are each uniquely framed. They appear to have been executed by the same artist.

Within a few feet one finds figure 42, a well done schooner. Not far away is a similar schooner (figure 43). These two images are unique in their use of the double lines for the hull. They have similar sail plans and the double lines at the stern of the gunwale. They were clearly done by the same maritime rock artist and again may represent the same vessel.

(figure 42) (figure 43)

            Figures 44, 45 and 46 show sloops with dots along the gunwale. Figure 44 has the dots below the line of the gunwale, while 45 and 46 have them above, suggesting people aboard the vessel. They appear to have been done by the same artist.

(figure 44) (figure 45)

 (figure 46)

            Figures 47, 48 and 49 are somewhat rounded shaped images, each with a series of dots above the sails, indicating a common artist. Figure 49 seems to have been signed.

  (figure 47) (figure 48)

(figure 49)

            The sloops shown in figures 50 and 51 each have a horizontal line trailing astern the gunwale, as does 46.

(figure 50) (figure 51)

            The schooners in figures 52 and 53 are both deeply pecked images, with a protrusion at the stern, hinting at a common artist.

(figure 52) (figure 53)

            The sloop in figure 54 has some features noticed in other images in this field which point towards a common school of art if not artist in some cases.

(figure 54)

            Figures 55 and 56 have the common traits of being much shallower and fainter images than their neighbors. This is especially the case with 56, which is quite easy to miss seeing at all. Both have uniquely upraised lines in their rigging, hinting at fire or smoke.

(figure 55) (figure 56)

            This small village seems to have been inhabited, in part, by artistic sailors, many of whom executed more than one image of vessels they were familiar with.

            Behind the northern end of the trees along this bit of coastline are two more images of interest. More rounded, simple and larger than the others, the images of these two sloops hint at a common source.

(figure 57) (figure 58)

            At the Waikaloa Village, in the shopping area known as King’s Shops is a boulder that had been removed prior to development over the field in which it was located. [7] This topsail sloop has a banana-shaped hull and a faint gourd-like image astern.

(figure 59)

Puako

          Along the trail of petroglyphs behind Puako Village is one esthetically interesting sloop [8] (figure 60). This triangular image shows the upper part of a human figure above the rudder. The mast and bulkheads are shown below decks and two or three anchors appear at the bow. Again, it appears this artist had been familiar with his vessel.

(figure 60)

Kahikinui, Maui

            Moving now to the southeastern side of the island of Maui, we find one petroglyph of a western ship. This image is found on a vertical rock face overhanging the entrance to a rock-shelter. [9] The nearest anchorage is well over a mile away at La Perouse * Bay, the location of a brief visit by two French frigates in 1786. A few artifacts found nearby are consistent with being dated to near that time. It would appear that the image of the ship in figure 61 was scratched or scrapped onto the boulder, not by an experienced sailor, but rather, but an observer, not familiar with the complex rigging of a large vessel. Indeed, the vertical lines along the side of the hull may be depictions of lines set out for visitors to climb aboard the ship for trade.

            While some Hawaiians gained access to the deck after chasing the ships down the coast in their canoes to trade, no villagers appear to have been allowed on board during the morning of May 30, 1786, while the French ships were anchored in the bay. [10]

            The one problem with the translation of this petroglyph being a rendering of one of those famous French vessels is the word “KAI” (meaning ocean), scratched above the ship. This would not have been spelled out by very many (if any) Hawaiians before the first primer of the Hawaiian Language was printed by the Protestant missionaries in 1828. The remote Kahikinui district would not have been amongst the earlier areas to receive formal education. This appears to date the image to a time somewhat after the brief visit of the two French ships in 1786.

(figure 61)

Nu‘uanu, ‘Oahu

            There is one petroglyph of a ship on the island of ‘Oahu. Amongst a cluster of petroglyphs on boulders above the Nu‘uanu stream bed, behind the Nu‘uanu Memorial Cemetery, is a well executed fully rigged ship (figure 62). Adjacent to the ship is a petroglyph of a man firing a musket (figure 63). The word “DISCOVERY” is carved into the rock as well. These particular images are now well hidden under a thick carpet of vines, so one must go to earlier publications to learn about them. [11] The late artist Jean Charlot determined that this was the work of an Englishman, rather than a Hawaiian, possibly the carpenter from George Vancouver’s ship Discovery which made a number of visits to the Island of ‘Oahu in the 1790s. [12]

(figure 62) (figure 63)

Koloa, Kaua‘i

            The final set of images to be discussed in this paper appear on the island of Kaua‘i, on the southern coast near the now unutilized port of Koloa. These images are on a sandstone ledge at Keoneloa Beach which is usually covered in sand, therefore only viewed occasionally. Rather than being the image of a hulls with masts and rigging, this image appears to be only the masts and sails, with the hull either lost or never carved into the sandstone (figure 64).

(figure 64)

Nearby are what appear to be two rowboats (sans oars), one of them with a man standing above the gunwales (figure 65). Judge Farley once wrote of them [13] “Two of the designs look enough like a cross and flag to make one think that foreigners may have had a hand in the work.”  Indeed, many foreigners visited this shoreline. Koloa was a very bust port during the later half of the 19^th century, shipping sugar and other island commodities out while bringing in coal to run the sugar mills, as well as all sorts of goods for the general population. Large, sometimes four or even five-masted, schooners would anchor off shore lightering goods on to smaller boats which were rowed or pulled to and from shore via cables. In times of light winds the ships’ officers might decide to hang their sails out to dry offering a view similar to that seen in these petroglyphs.

(figure 65)

            In conclusion I believe it can be fairly stated that petroglyphs of western style vessels in the Hawaiian Islands were carved, pecked, chipped, and scrapped into various types of lithic surfaces for a variety of reasons, by a number of different artists. Some of those Hawaiian rock artists completed more than one maritime image and at least two of them signed their work.

• Notes to editor;  The o in Pohue needs an “okina” over it. This word processor does not offer that font, so I have typed the letter in blue for you.
• The same is true for the third o in Honokohau.
• The e in Perouse needs French punctuation.

• Figures 1-16, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25 and 36-58 were drawn by the author from photographs taken in the field. Figures 17, 20, 23, 24, 26-33 and 60 were adapted from drawings by Ed and Diane Stasack. Figure 61 was adapted from a drawing by Millerstrom and Kirch. Figures 62 and 63 were adapted from a rubbing published by Jean Charlot. Figures 64 and 65 were adapted from photographs in the archives of the Bishop Museum.

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