THE OTAGO MUSEUM

Evening Star, Issue 19002, 25 July 1925, Page 19

THE OTAGO MUSEUM

A GUIDE FOR VISITORS THE MAORI COLLECTION [Written by " J.C.,” for the ‘Evening Star.’] In latter years the collection relating to Maori life and art has been growing rapidly. Although, from the times of earliest exploration and settlement in New Zealand, objects illustrating native art in this country have been eagerly sought by museums' all over the globe, it was not till the year 1908, when the Hocken collection was presented, that the Otago Museum began to acquire its fair share. A few pieces were present from the museum’s earliest years, but since 1908, mainly by large and generous donations such as the Moritzson, John White, Murdoch, Chapman, Fels, Thomson, and Teviotdale collections, rapid progress has been made. The strength of the collection lies mainly in the fullness of table exhibits —that is, objects of small size, mainly, which can be shown in table cases; and in this respect it is the finest Maori collection in existence. Auckland Museum excels in large articles, such as carved houses, canoes, and in its exhibits of textiles, but is weaker in smaller artifacts. The Dominion Museum is weaker than Auckland in textiles and carvings, but approaches” Otago Museum more nearjy with regard to table material. It is interesting to note that the British Museum and the. museums of Cambridge and Oxford contain wonderful collections of choice objects, such as beautifully-carved feather boxes, musical instruments, weapons, personal ornaments, and mats, obtained by Captain Cook and his companions, and from earliest missionaries and settlers. However, these collections are illbalanced, in that they consist mainly of such small articles as would be easily transported by travellers. Larger articles, materials of stone, and those which have been recovered by excavation properly conducted are present in quantity only in our own New Zealand museums, and give a sequence and value to the material such that any ■worker in Maori lore must visit Now Zealand to find the proper objects to study. Of the collection of carved feather boxes in the museum, which contains no first-rate examples, though two are good, by far the greater number have been purchased in London. As might be expected, the greater part of the collection relates to the South Island, and the first rows of cases seen on entering the Hocken wing show material obtained from Otago and Southland. If the line along the south side of the first row is followed, wo find first an extremely fine collection of greenstone. The exhibits on show, with the addition of the greenstone sections of the Thomson and Fels collections, the main parts of which are at present gathering dust in the basements owing to lack of room for their display, will undoubtedly be larger and more important than any other.

The term greenstone is at present loosely applied not only to the hard, beautiful nephrite, which is the true greenstone, but also to rocks which accompany it, and, though inferior in usefulness and of a different chemical composition, resomble it closely in color. Were a scientific test to bo made of all the specimens in the cases it would probably reveal the fact that about 60 per. cent, were serpentine, soapstone, or bowenite, and not nephrite at all. In the first case is the Murdoch collection, every piece of which was found by Mr J. W. Murdoch himself, mainly on the beaches in the immediate neighborhood of Dunedin or at Stewart Island. Greenstone is seen to the best advantage on a sunny day. whan the light shows up the beautiful, greens, blues, and even dark purples. It i«. noteworthy that some of the implements have been made i'rom very in-fer-or t stone. Although the exact localities have not yet been determined, it is certain that the greater part of the greenstone used in Otago and Southland has been carried to the eastern shores all the way from a belt of green-stone-bearing country between the head of Lake Wakatipu, and Milford Sound, and in view of the difficulty of transport every piece of stone acquired additional value to the early Maori workmen. , i Practically all the of the Maori was accomplished by means of adzes, which perfonued all the functions that the saw, axe, plane, chisel, and adze collectively do for us. Thus adzes of all_ sizes ancl degree are found, while Maori axes are exceedingly rare. A small case, giving a first taste of the Thomson collection, contains some particularly fine adzes. Occasionally adzes attached to wooden handles were used as weapons, but more often these were an insignia of rank. Such a one, of beautiful translucent stone, highly polished, and attached to a fine carved wooden handle, is to be seen in the case containing North Island exhibits. Better classes of greenstone were used for making meres and pendants of various kinds, and a special exhibit shows plainly the methods and stages of greenstone working, from the rough hewing of a solid slab to the final polishing on a large block of sandstone. Of special interest, too, is a case fievoted to a collection of “ fakes ” During the eighties and nineties more particularlyj though to a lessor extent now, trade in greenstone articles flourished, and many dealers'manufactured close imitations of the genuine Maori article. 1 A shrewd method of disposing of these goods was usually adopted. The fakes were sold to the Maoris themselves, and they, with the utmost gusto, resold them to credulous collectors and enhanced the value of their waies by surrounding them, in a halo of venerable mythology. Many introduced Te Rauparaha, the Maori Napoleon, who, having subdued much of the North Island, carried war down into the South, as the original owner, and stated usually that ho had presented the pieces as a peace offering to the tribe of which the seller was a member. OfMhe pendants tikis are at once the most curious and the most precious. They are of human form, with the legs brought together, and often with the head inclined to one side. It is believed that this_ type was developed in New Zealand,‘since earlier forms, such ns one in the Pels collection, found at Whangarei, are straight-legged. The actual meaning is obscure, but many assert that the form represents the human embryo, and that the tiki was a fertility charm. There are, however, various objections to this theory. With the f.MWon of a nrniher from the Pels collection, which are being added from time to time, the collection of tikis on exhibit is becoming large and valuable. The largest and probably the finest in existence is one at present on loan from Mr Macdonald, while the Thomson case contains one especially perfect specimen. The collection of artifacts relating to the antiquity of man in New Zealand was obtained mostly by Mr Teviotdale from the moa hunter camp at Shag River mouth. The collection of fishhooks is particularly fine, and contains many of large size and some fitted with stone shafts. For manufacturing these moa hones were extensively used. The collection also shows a series of

flakes of quartzites used by the! Shag River Valley people as cutting instruments. _ In the case or local weapons it is noticeable that no greenstone meres find a place. The Otago weapons differ from those of the North island in being generally longer ;-nd less finished. The fiddle-shaped mere characteristic of the North Island is also absent. Another interesting, if somewhat harrowing, exhibit is a set of baby’s bones painted red, probably indicative of affec- , tion and parental care. | The series of cases on the north side of the collection are from other districts, and are valuable for comparison purposes. Perhaps the most interesting is the group relating to the Morions. Their stone weapons are of somewhat similar shape to those in the Maori cases. Their adzes include one monster weighing 2931 b, obviously not meant for any use other than ritual. There is also a fine collection of flint blubber and fish scrapers, so important in the people’s domestic life, two of which are fixed to wooden handles believed to be unique. The collection of bone instruments, though not large, is very varied and extremely choice. Moriori implements and weapons closely resemble those of the Maori, but appear to be most closely allied to those of Canterbury and Otago. Among the North Island weapons are two long, curved whalebone hoeroas with carved handles. These are particularly handsome, and, again, were probably tokens of rank or used in rituals, though some have it that they were used for killing women, j The larger upright cases contain many J very fine exhibits of cloaks, capes, kits, < Maori twine, mats, paddles, weapons, and agricultural implements. In the case near the north end is a dried head very much tattooed. The owner was unfortunate to receive a severe blow at the base of the skull a hundred years or more ago. Another very interesting : item is a flintlock rifle which belonged to Tuhawaiki (Bloody Jack), who was; one of the most powerful of the South i Island chiefs between 1830-50. Per-1 haps the most interesting of these cases is the one containing implements relating to fishing and agriculture. In the south-west corner are a large number of reproductions, specimens, and photo- : graphs of those curious rock paintings which have been found in limestone, caves in certain parts of the dominion, | mainly at Tengawai Gorge, Duntroon; j Hazelburn, Totara Valley; and Weka ; Pass, North Canterbury. Jt is to be hoped that in the near future a special study of these drawings will be made j from this collection.

The exhibits of large carvings are not numerous, and sadly lack variety at present. Nevertheless, the quality is good, and in the beautifully-carved potaka, or storehouse on piles, we have a piece which, as it stood originally, was finer than any other whole house that has been preserved. As the illustrations show, this has been restored. A new case containing a Maori warrior, life size, has just been added, and, although not quite finished, reflects great credit on the work of Mr H. E. Gibson.