Europe’s Maori artefacts listed

Press, 5 January 1979, Page 2

Europe’s Maori artefacts listed

PA Auckland: The Auckland Institute: and Museum’s ethnologist, | Mr D. Simmons, has com-1 pleted 10 months in Europe I recording Maori artefacts “that would take all the gold in Fort Knox to buy back.” He visited 120 museums ' in 13 countries, from Britain jto Russia. More than 4000 New Zealand Maori items were recorded and photographed for the Auckland Museum archives. Mr Simmo's said that if present high prices continued, New Zea’anders were unlikely to see the treasures here. The artefacts have gone since Captain Cook began “bargain hunting” in 1769, and while New Zealand has bought back some of the material for its own museums, they did not open until 100 years after the collecting had begun. Mr Simmons found that the British Museum alone I has more objects in every i category, except house carIvings, adzes and cloaks, I than in all the Nev* Zealand museums put together. I He estimated that he has | ’ ow recorded 90 per cent of ial Maori artefacts in existence, after a similar trip to Canada and the United iStates in 1973. His research confirmed suspicions that the Queen Charlotte Sound area bei came a “trading post” with

Maoris . travelling from the North island to barter with the explorers. Captain Cook (1769-1777), the Russian, Bellinghausen (1820), and the French explorer, Dumont d’Urville U 826-27), all visited the Sound and traded with the I aoris.

By studying artefacts I taken from these voyages it was possible to discern changes i population, carving, and weaving. In studying the European collections Mr Simmons also hopes to gain further information on regional variations in material culture and some carving styles that have died out.