MAORI CRAFT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 237, 7 October 1930, Page 5

MAORI CRAFT.

WEAVING AND PLAITING. DEMONSTRATION AT MUSEUM. CLEVER WOMAN AT WORK. A most interesting innovation was inaugurated at the Auckland War Memorial Museum yesterday afternoon, when Mrs. Tameha'na, of Otahuhu, gave an exhibition of plaiting and weaving as practised by the Maori from time immemorial. She sat on a mat in the porch of the big Maori house, and as she was suitably garbed, it was not difficult to imagine the scene when all her female forbears were of necessity plaiters and weavers. To-day she probably derives the same satisfaction from her art as her pakeha sisters do from their embroidery and other fancy work. Mrs. Tamehana's work is much more picturesque, and it give 3 a fine opportunity for the display of graceful wrists, which most Maori women have, in spite of the fact that they are- almost always plumper than pakeha women.

Mrs. Tamehana belongs to Taranaki, ■but she is now living at Otahuhu Accompanied by her niece, she arrived at the Museum with quite an outfit of flax,' implements, and articles in various stages of making. Squatting down she' showed the public how simply, yet how skilfully, the old-time Maori turned flax to so many uses. With three blades of the green flax, split up the middle, she quickly plaited several sorts of "kono," or baskets, such as were used for putting food in front of guests at a feast or tangi. It was astonishing how quickly her deft, fingers turned out perfectly made baskets of a square shape, with the top edge neatly rolled into a sort of selvedge, the whole sufficiently closely plaited to hold anything short of liquids. Then she went o'fl to show how the "kawe" was made. The kawe is the backstrap with which the old-time- Maori used to carry a load from place to place, tho principle being much that of the ruck-sac. It was a most convenient way of carrying things, and its invention was a proof of the high intelligence of the Maori.

From The Raw Flax.

A'n interesting part of Mrs. Taniehana's demonstration was the preparation of the weaving material from the raw flax. Using the sharp edge of the "kutai : ' (th& mussel shell) as a scraper, held in thumb and forefinger in a peculiar manner, she stripped completely the outside green skin off each leaf of flax, leaving the silk-like fibre exposed. Incidentally, it is interesting to know that the bad old days when flax was bartered by the Maoris for guns, every ounce of the finished fibre' had to be* prepared by the" -women in this laborious manner, and. the price of a stand of muskets must have represented ma'ny moons of patient toil. Mrs. Tamehana showed examples of excellently made kits, poi balls, flax mats, and other things, and she also had on view a "hue," or gourd, such as was used by they old-time Maoris for holding liquids, the identical sort of thing mentioned in the story of Hinemoa and Tuta'nekai. Mr. F. V. Fisher explained the various processes and the- uses of the things being made. In the course of some remarks when introducing Mrs. Tameliana to the public, the director of the Museum, Mr. Gilbert Archey, mentioned that it was intended to give a series of similar demonstratio'ns during the next few months, the dates of which would be announced from time to time. Recently there has been quite a revival of interest in the crafts of the Maori, and the series should attract many visitors if it is sufficiently advertised. The Museum is fortunate in securing the help of Mrs. Tameha'na, who is good all round at these interesting crafts of the Maori.