Manny Mattos is a local boy, born and raised on the island of Oahu. For over 25 years, Manny has been researching and perfecting his skills as a Hawaiian weapons craftsman and has become widely known to collectors. His handcrafted weapons are authentic replicas of the original Hawaiian weapons viewed by millions in museums around the world.
Jason Mamoa chose Manny Mattos to make all the weapons used in his Apple TV series, “Chief of War,” about the rise of King Kamehameha the Great, and the uniting of all the Hawaiian Islands. All weapons shown in this series are made from original designs Manny created for Jason Mamoa and the cast. Mamoa liked them so much that he actually purchased several of Manny’s Koa and Shark Tooth leiomano weapons. They are now in Mamoa’s personal collection.
Early Hawaiians were the only Polynesians to incorporate Shark Teeth into their wood weapons. Hawaiian ingenuity of using shark teeth made their weapons much more lethal than those by other Polynesians. Just as early Hawaiian did, Manny uses cord to tie each shark tooth to a Koa base. No glue used because early Hawaiians did not have glue.
The earliest Hawaiian weapons were smaller and slightly larger than a warrior’s hand. Eventually, Hawaiian increased the size of weapons to as much as 24” long, adding more shark teeth, making them more destructive.
Early Hawaiians found that the weight and density of Koa was ideal for making weapons that would be easy handle and heavy enough to cut through flesh without a lot of effort. The cord at the end of the weapon allowed the warrior to wrap it around his thumb, providing more leverage when slashing an opponent.
Manny uses Koa from the private stock of Martin & MacArthur, harvested only from previously fallen and dead Koa trees. We never cut down any Koa trees and never use Koa cut from live trees. Martin & MacArthur is a leader in Koa reforestation.
