Inside This Unit: The Full Breakdown
The Pacific (700–1980 CE) covers the arts of Oceania — Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia — including the moai, tapa, and tattoo.
Why it matters
It centers status, genealogy, ritual, and the achievements of ocean navigation.
Key concepts
- Moai honor ancestors and convey status.
- Mana is spiritual power objects can embody.
- Tapa and tattoo mark status, identity, and ceremony.
Ancestry, Status, and Mana
Pacific art expresses genealogy and rank, often embodying mana (spiritual power/prestige). The moai of Rapa Nui honor ancestors; barkcloth (tapa) and tattoo (tatau) mark identity and ceremony; many works function in performance or exchange. Recognize the region’s diversity rather than treating Oceania as uniform.
AP exam tip
Relate a Pacific work to status, genealogy, or ritual, and consider its performative or exchange context.
Connections to other units
- Unit 5: Indigenous American arts also encode genealogy and cosmology.
- Unit 6: Performance and ancestral veneration parallel African practice.
