Rare Antique Ukulele made of Koa by Abe Mahelona

This rare Ukulele from Hawaii made from the Koa tree. It is one of three handmade by Hawaiian elder Abe Mahelona. The Koa tree population has suffered from grazing and logging. Many wet forest areas, where the largest koa grow, have been logged out, and it now comes largely from dead or dying trees or farms on private lands. Although formerly used for outrigger canoes, there are few koa remaining which are both large and straight enough to do so today.