Barkcloth is fabric made from the inner bark of certain trees, pounded and softened until it becomes flexible like cloth. For thousands of years, people in tropical regions like Pacific islands, parts of Africa, and Southeast Asia created barkcloth by carefully peeling bark from trees like mulberry, breadfruit, or fig trees, then soaking and beating it with wooden mallets until the fibers spread out and merge into sheets.

The process takes skill and patience. Craftspeople strip away the rough outer bark to reach the softer inner layer, then pound it repeatedly, sometimes for hours, to create material thin and soft enough to wear or use for blankets and wall hangings. Different trees produce different textures: some barkcloth feels almost like soft leather, while other types come out thin and papery.

In places like Uganda, barkcloth-making remains an important traditional craft. In ancient Hawaii, people created elaborate tapa (their word for barkcloth), decorated with beautiful geometric patterns. Unlike woven cloth made from threads on a loom, barkcloth is felted, meaning the fibers bond together through pressure and moisture rather than being woven over and under each other.

Today, the word “barkcloth” also describes a textured cotton fabric printed with tropical designs, though this modern fabric comes from cotton plants, not tree bark at all.