Lapita is the name given to an ancient culture known for its role in the exploration and settlement of the Pacific islands. The earliest Lapita archaeological sites are dated to between 1500 and 1300 BCE. The Lapita people were skilled seafarers and navigators who established settlements across a vast area from Southeast Asia to Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, New Caledonia, and Fiji, reaching Tonga and Samoa by roughly 1000 BCE. Their distinctive pottery, together with evidence from carbon-14 dating, has enabled scholars to trace their eastward migration. DNA analysis has demonstrated that the Lapita people were ancestors of many present-day Polynesians, including the Māori people of New Zealand.

The Lapita sites that have been excavated revealed artefacts including earthenware pottery and stone tools. The pottery features intricate repeating geometric patterns that occasionally include anthropomorphic faces and figures. The patterns were incised into the pots with a comb-like tool before firing . Some of the designs found on Lapita pottery may be related to patterns seen in modern Polynesian tattoos and tapa (barkcloth). Web resources here, here and here.

Teouma Pot No. 2. From Teouma, Efate Island, Vanuatu. Earthenware. Lapita culture. Ca. 1200–1000 BCE.