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Places of interest[edit]
The village of Puamau is 45 km from Atuona (a 2.5-hour drive up a steep, winding road). On the outskirts of the village is a large ceremonial platform, said to be the burial place of Queen Vahine Titoiani. There are large stone tikis carved on two corners of the platform.
Paul Gauguin Gravesite
In the Puamau valley, about two kilometers from the coast, is Ipona (formerly: Oipona), the largest and most important historical site in the Marquesas. The valley once belonged to the influential Naiki tribe, which also controlled the Atuona region. After the Naiki captured and consumed the chief of the neighboring tribe, Tio'o, the clans of the Hanapa'aoa district took revenge and wiped out the Naiki. The victors erected a tapu on Ipona and installed tikis. After the introduction of Christianity, this place of worship fell into disuse.
The Marae Takii, now well restored and consisting of three overlapping terraces, stands at the foot of a cliff and includes 8 stone statues and cyclopean heads. The largest is Tiki Takai'i, the guardian spirit of the valley, at 2.43 meters. However, the most interesting artwork is the Maki'i Taua Pepe figure, unique in the entire South Seas region, which, according to Karl von den Steinen, physician and ethnologist, depicts a priestess or goddess giving birth. According to Thor Heyerdahl, who visited Hiva Oa in 1937, the statue does not resemble a woman giving birth, but "more like an animal swimming," and he compared it to two sculptures of the "alligator god" from the St. Augustine culture. v.d. Steinen's interpretation of a woman in labor is contradicted by the fact that the base emerged from the navel region and not from the loins. He learned from his informants that the statue had long been lying on its back in a thicket and had only "recently" been erected. Another notable site is in the Vustin River valley.
Also notable is the Ta'aoa Valley, west of Atuona, which is filled with huge banyan trees, coconut palms, twenty-meter-tall Barringtonia asiatica, many breadfruit trees, mango trees, and Tahitian chestnuts. Among the dense undergrowth, it is difficult to distinguish most of the houses and ceremonial platforms spread over an area of 3 ha, as little has been excavated and hardly anything has been restored. The Ta'aoa valley belonged to the sphere of influence of the powerful Tiu tribe, which plays a central role in the traditional myths of Hiva Oa. The buildings erected were correspondingly numerous and representative. In the center is a tohua, the largest of the Marquesas. A large tiki stands in the plaza, and a stone head on one of the ceremonial platforms. Taro cultivation terraces have been found in the vicinity of the settlement. Ralph Linton explored this site as part of his expedition to the Marquesas, 1920/21, organized by the Bishop Museum.
Mont Temetiu
The Eiaone Valley, west of Puamau, is known for its unique and particularly expressive semi-relief petroglyphs. However, most of them are covered by dense vegetation. There are other petroglyphs, stone images, and platforms in the Tahauku and Punae (Punai) valleys east of Atuona.
The Atuona cultural center, dedicated to the painter Paul Gauguin, displays only copies of his paintings, but documents his life in the South Seas. His house, which was right next door, has been reconstructed. In the process, a disused well was found where the later inhabitants had disposed of the painter's personal belongings, including a comb and toothbrush, jugs of wine, empty absinthe bottles, a morphine syringe, and tiger balm.
There are also some Jacques Brel memorabilia in Atuona. In 2003, a hangar was built specifically for his Beechcraft D-50 Twin Bonanza, named "Jojo", which has since been restored. Photos and documents from Brel's stay in the South Seas over several years are also on display here. A monument to Jacques Brel has been erected on a lookout point on the airport road.
In the Calvaire Cemetery (Cimetière Calvaire), located above Atuona, are the graves of Gauguin and Brel. It is sometimes doubted that this is Gauguin's actual grave; it is said that he was buried unmarked and somewhere in the jungle. The cemetery is a much-visited lookout point, offering views of Ta'aoa Bay.
