Local origin stories describe the discovery of mokos buried in the ground, and it is still common to hear of moko being uncovered in this way. In The  People of Alor, American anthropologist Cora Du Bois describes people burying mokos in hidden locations to avoid surrendering them to creditors or lending them to relatives.
Some scholars identify the design and decorations have their likely origin in Đông Sơn the centre of the Đông Sơn culture in Vietnam. However, it remains a mystery as to how the older Đông Sơn drums arrived in Alor.