Talk:Kapaemahu

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Public art info (Billy Fields) is relevant[edit]

Folks: my earlier Aug 11 2020 edit added data that was not already in this article, contrary to "Imi Ike Nui"'s claim to the contrary when they were reverted all. It would have been courtesy to first explain concerns here ON THE TALK PAGE, especially since Imi Ike Nui's claim that the new info was "a cut and paste from a Google article" is wrong: the source was Public Art in Public Places, which is an official public art data source. I don't want to get into re-reverting it, so instead I believe this smaller edit adding a one-line explanation of the public art component by Billy Fields, serves well enough to include this important fact. Please note also that Wikipedia articles are NOT the place for your opinion that this monument is not public art. Wikipedia is the place for facts supported by legitimate sources: to wit, note that the City/County of Honolulu also lists The Stones of Life on its public art database, confirming the public art component. TashaB 20:21, 11 August 2020 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by Natasha Behrendt (talkcontribs)

Misinformation about human sacrifice[edit]

Hi, I don't know how to edit on wikipedia but I do want to bring this to editors' attention. The paragraph under the section "Tradition of Kapaemahu" ends with the statement, "The legend also states that “sacrifice was offered of a lovely, virtuous chiefess,” and that the “incantations, prayers and fasting lasted one full moon.” Once their spiritual powers had been transferred to the stones, the four mahu vanished, and were never seen again.[1]"

The citation refers to Boyd, James H. 1907. “Tradition of the Wizard Stones Ka-Pae-Mahu.” Hawaiian Almanac and Annual, ed. Thomas Thrum.

This "legend" was created by Europeans and has no correlation to Hawaiian history, and reprinting it here contributes to the propagation of harmful misinformation and stereotypes.

In this thesis: [1], Teora S Morris traces the rumor of a "sacrificed virgin skeleton" found beneath the stones to the actual uncovering of a single jawbone by Cleghorn during excavation (pp. 65-66). Morris goes on to analyze the Euro-American creation of the myth of the "virgin princess sacrifice" in the Pacific (pp. 87-91).

I hope someone savvy with wikipedia editing can properly document this "legend" or else put it to bed.

Thank you!

2600:1700:9757:8200:251F:4702:EAEE:D9AB (talk) 22:17, 14 March 2021 (UTC)Encian[reply]

References

Wiki Education assignment: Anthropology 151 Culture and Humanity[edit]

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 10 January 2022 and 4 May 2022. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): ItsLogan808 (article contribs).