Maori: New Zealand's First Inhabitants

Maori, an exhibition first organized by Museum Volkenkunde Leiden, is now on view at the Linden Museum in Stuttgart.  Through an assemblage of 140 antique and contempoary works, the exhibition explores the Maori concepts of mana and tapu, and invites visitors to sound the depth of Maori culture, both in the past and the 21st century.

View the official website.

Pendant, hei tiki  -  19th century

Whalebone club with manaia finial, kotiate  -  19th century

Flax cloak, tukukakumai  -  Kohai Grace, 21st century

War club, taiaha  -  19th century

Bone flute, nguru  -  19th century

Panel carving (poupou) depicting the demigod Maui

Information and images courtesy of the Linden Museum, Stuttgart

Tribal Art Auction - Webb's, March 28

On Wednesday, March 28, Webb's of New Zealand will present a sale of several significant international collections of Maori taonga and artifacts from a range of Oceanic cultures. An historically important poutokomanawa (carved centre post) and two significant feather cloaks are included alongside a lifetime collection of Maori and Oceanic fish hooks, as well as early examples from the Webster collection, Maori weaponry, adornment and a quality selection of Melanesian, Polynesian and African tribal artworks.

View the offical website.

Poutokomanawa figure attributed to Anaha Te Rahui (1822–1913)  -  Maori, New Zealand

Feathered prestige cloak, kahu huruhuru  -  Maori, New Zealand  -  Late nineteenth century

Figural pendant, hei tiki  -  Maori, New Zealand  -  Eighteenth century

Ancestral figure, tekoteko  -  Maori, New Zealand

Trade axe with manaia finial, patiti  -  Maori, New Zealand  -  Mid-nineteenth century

Club with manaia finial, kotiate  -  Maori, New Zealand

Group of Oceanic fishing lures  -  Various cultures, nineteenth century

Information and images courtesy of Webb's

Oceanic & African Arts Sale at Webb’s

Webb's has been appointed by a US museum to manage the return of a significant collection of Maori, Australian Aboriginal and Oceanic pieces to the South Pacific region. Exceptional examples of sculpture, traditional dress and adornment, weaponry, ceremonial clubs, and other forms of indigenous art from Aotearoa and the broader Oceania area will be offered. The event also gives collectors the opportunity to consider a selection of African art of exceptional provenance from private Australasian, European and North American collections.

The viewing will be from June 11 through June 16, 2010. The auction itself on Thursday, June 17, 2010 at 4PM.

Lot 344a from the Sale:




Important Pou-Tokomanawa – Ancestral Totem - Architectural Element 
A highly prestigious form of ancestral carving, the pou-tokomanawa supported the central pole of the meeting house (pou-koukou-aro) at the base and signalled the delineation between entry and exit. As an ancestral totem, the pou-tokomanawa often represents celebrated traits of important leaders and thinkers. This pou-tokomanawa is carved with a firm muscular stance and an unflinching, confident, relaxed expression. Holding a patu in the right hand, denoting his knowledge of martial arts, and his left hand resting equally on the stomach. The torso is accentuated by its strong round shoulders and the simplicity of the form are both typical of the carving style of the North Island, east coast region. There is evidence of a piupiu having been previously attached. During the late 19th century, as Western sensibilities influenced concepts of social decorum and prestige, the addition of piupiu and cloaks to ancestral figures became increasingly common. The patina suggests significant age with remnants of early trade paint, heat damage and weather exposure evident. The base of the figure has deteriorated which is common given that this architectural form rested on the ground. The moko is prestigious with triple hae hae forms and complex rarua spirals evident on the upper and lower quarters of the nose and cheeks. The four extending forehead rays are also in triple haehae form. The stability of the wood is generally good, however the head, used to support the meeting house, carries a support cavity and is split. Later addition of mounting 19th century nails at the base still in place. Contemporary application of white paint to eyes. The Y registration form states that the object was found amongst the sand dunes of Gisborne during the 1950s and was then gifted to a member of the current owner’s family. H782mm W313mm. Y14046. 
$40,000 - $80,000

After French Restitution of Maori Heads, African Sacred Artifacts Next?

A mummified Maori warrior head at the Rouen museum, in France, finally returns home to New Zealand after more than 200 years. This unexpected decision also concerns 15 other heads in several museums across France. The issue was triggered by a bill that was originally passed by the French Senate in June 2009 and adopted Thursday, April 29, by the majority in the National Assembly. It came into effect on Tuesday. But could this new legislation revolutionize the landscape in what concerns the restitution of African cultural assets?

Eight years after the passage of a bill that saw the handing over of the remains of Saartje Baartman, a.k.a. the Hottentot Venus, to South Africa the adoption of a new French law by an overwhelming majority could encourage the debate on the restitution of cultural property.
Thursday, April 29, members of the National Assembly voted en masse to adopt a bill that seeks the return of 15 mummified Maori heads, dotted around several French museums, back to New Zealand.

Proposed by Catherine Morin-Desailly, centrist Senator of Rouen, the bill was accepted by the Senate last June (2009) without amendment, by all present.

And the solemn vote that took place Tuesday, May 4, marks a point of no return towards a final adoption of the bill, with 457 MPs in favor and a meager 8 against.

The decision comes as a total surprise, considering that a request for the return of one of the Maori heads, at the Rouen Museum, had been rejected by the French authorities some three years ago, after some enthusiasts argued that other collections could be affected.

But is this the end of the road for countries seeking the return of their cultural property?

Although uncertain, Abdoulaye Camara, former president of the Museum of African Art in Dakar believes that "it’s a huge leap forward. Before this law, European museums did not want to hear about restitution. Now they are beginning to consider it. This can set into motion the issue of restitution of African cultural property."

It is a complex bill that only concerns human remains for now. Human remains that some museum officials have said could have been products of murders perpetrated in the search for exotic collector items in Europe in the 18th and 19th Centuries.

But "can humans be considered a collector’s item?" Asks Mr. Camara. The answer is yes. And it is precisely on this point that this new legislation could be considered as being revolutionary.
It seeks to "reactivate" a procedure to downgrade public collections deemed "inalienable". The procedure is expected to allow for the return home of many human remains exhibited as exotic oddities, more often than not, within the confines of Western museums.

"The ordinary mind can hardly fathom how these human remains could have stayed without burial, and far from their homeland," says an outraged Abdoulaye Camara.

And the French National Assembly (Parliamentary) Relations Minister Henri de Raincourt agrees: "From a ritual showing the respect of a tribe and family toward their dead, the mummified heads became the object of a particularly barbaric trade due to the curiosity of travelers and European collectors".

This piece of law therefore answers an ethical question that has been ignored for a long time. These human remains, which on the one hand are regarded as collectors’ items or pieces of art by Western art enthusiasts, and sacred by their own people on the other hand, can finally enjoy their long overdue homecoming and burial.

The preserved Maori head in Rouen was offered by an individual in 1875. Several cities around Europe, including Geneva, Glasgow, Edinburgh, London and Copenhagen have already responded positively to New Zealand’s request for restitution.

Last year, The Netherlands gave back the head of King Badu Bonsu II, beheaded in the Gold Coast (now Ghana) 171 years ago by the Dutch, to Ghana. His head had been preserved in formalin and kept in the reserves of a medical center.

In 2002, France gave the body of Saartjie Baartman back to South Africa. After her death, the South African woman’s corpse was cast in plaster and dissected, nicknamed The Hottentot Venus and displayed at the Museum of Mankind (Musée de l’Homme) in Paris.

"There are some things which are above art and which should remain sacred," Catherine Morin-Desailly told the Associated Press.

Source: afrik.com

By: Alicia Koch, Patrick K. Johnsson

Exploring the Lost Tribal Art of Maori Puppetry

From the New Zealand Herald News:

Reviving the lost tribal art of karetao, or Maori puppetry, will be discussed at NZ’s Waikato University wananga this week.

Professor Aroha Yates-Smith is bringing together kaumatua, carvers and artists to talk about guidelines for a revival.

Karetao are ceremonial marionettes with the body, legs and head usually carved from a single piece of wood. Arms and legs are operated by tightening and releasing cords which are tied through the back of the shoulders.

Pockets of carvers are starting to research and build the figures but there are huge gaps in knowledge about their use, Professor Yates-Smith says.

"We know they were used for instruction and entertainment but I think traditionally they were quite tapu ritualistically. I know of at least two that have been buried with whanau… They told stories ... I would imagine they also had a spiritual and healing quality and that's something we need to talk about with our elders."

Te Papa has some in its collection and the museum thinks karetao movements imitated haka, with their primary purpose to instruct young people in tribal history.

It also notes one account of a giant karetao being operated by an iwi who were under siege at their pa - basically so they could taunt their enemies outside the gates.

Researchers also know that the figures had a number of names including keretao, korotao, rapatahuri, repetahuri and tokoraurape.

Artist James Webster became interested in the marionettes through another passion, the revival of taonga puoro, Maori musical instruments.

He said the late Hirini Melbourne, the man credited with "awakening" those sleeping instruments, spoke of the use of taonga puoro in collaboration with the performance of karetao.

Bonham's Lot No: 4105Y

A Maori whalebone club, wahaika, Rotorua area, North Island, New Zealand with haliotis shell inlaid eyes. Length 15.5 inches.

Estimate: $2,000 - 3,000