A kāhili is a symbol of the aliʻi chiefs and families of the Hawaiian Islands. It was taken by the Kamehamehas as a Hawaiian royal standard and used by the Royal Families to indicate their lineage.
Portrait of Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena holding the feathered royal kāhili, by Robert Dampier
Bishop Museum Kāhili Room
Kāhili bearers for Keʻelikōlani
Harriet or Harrieta Keōpūolani Nāhiʻenaʻena (1815–1836) was a high-ranking princess during the founding of the Kingdom of Hawaii and the conversion of some of the ruling class to Christianity.
Painting of Nāhiʻenaʻena by Barthélémy Lauvergne in 1836.
The young princess Nāhiʻenaʻena wearing her ahu’ula and holding a royal kāhili in 1825.