WAR MEMORIAL MUSEUM.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 17853, 6 August 1921, Page 11

WAR MEMORIAL MUSEUM.

SOUTH PACtFSC EXHIBITS.

ADf.QTATE spaci: FRoED..

P - ,f l''FcKs VIEWS

"■ ' ' ;";«"«,,H for the extra amm J '' " '' t; " !l ""ill I"" 5 provided in 'he • ■y"'--™* War Memor.nl Museum j 1 if nwk. medical ofti... t to the 1 ■•-> '■' North ],!a,,i. referred ves-1 '. '-'■ ,'" .'''\ "l'l'«"-tuiiily that will he' " ;: '" 1 ". "•'••'l»«lol> dealmg with the- " ■'■<■'■ ' '•Ivnesnu, and Melanesian coi- j ■'"■," \ ,i: ' s ""lurk* have the more! '■•' h.N reason of his extensive know "••■'-" ; : '" =■ 'hjvit. He said:-* ' IT- prospect of a<ie.,uatelv hoiu-dng ' , ' , I ,' in the Auckland Me l|>l " ln ! should eve great sati.-i . '.' "■.'•"•■«•■••* «■< ihe Maori people ;. ' «■' ">o Auckland public. A, the ' "•" nrH howt-.ver. a hi am h of the 1 '■■•'-■ '"' '■■"■" - the Maori collection, as '; ea of supplying material for studv i ■•'■■"iplet« wyhout a. good Polynesian' '•'"" n the Instorv ot the races of "'•'■'" ' ■ 'hen> is no chapter more inter! " ! ~ . " : "' '■'•".'■•aniic than thai dealing •:e peopling of the Islands of the 1 v 'he Polynesians Their voyages: ■ jie.".ts ot: the vast Pacific make the' •; ■._•;.. trips ot ihe fighting Vikings and; ' |j r '-. noenicians sm:s into comparative; \ Polynesian collection devolves npon I 1 '-" » ltl ' ! . v - Apart from common origin' ' tie Maoris, the inhabitants of some ' \«-se islands come under New Zealand " ,' r ''^ ra V' n '; ° f su '" !l are the People ■• 'he took Croup and Xiue. The prin-• ■ i'-'l island in the Cook Croup is Ra.ro- ' "■**• "hiai was the last port of call >.e tatooed navigators whence tbev i s<* ■■■■I do* n to Aotearoa. I\r SaJnoan Croup, inhabited bv what '•'-. :; K " ! UP"H a* perhaps the purest type: "'"• ues-.ari ha* recently be«n added to ■ ' " r ''* '"'• ••• tl en. within our bord- '. ;* '""' ' ' ■ S l , *'''K. we hive two groups of ;; ''"I- '\nic-.l o? Eastern and Western ' ' >; ".- ; "' ■ lul , ' v >' r > effort should he made <• -'•" er matenal to illustrate their arts' ■••-el . :..i:> „i;,i general cui.ure. Large Fields in Present Arts and Crafts. ; f ' Tio\ v.\,is A:i. k'ind has been ' ■!• --e touch through trade, with the ■-■••< old s,„ ■~.,., Crotrps. Tonga is; : i" •■ng an independenl kingdom. ' nut ister'.ng its own affairs. The Society ' ;'■ ■'M' '-onlatns R:uatea. the Rangiatea of ■■ lacnr.fiki trit.es. from which the Aotea ' sailed. Its chef island. Tahiti,-was [.'■'•hjib.y li,c distributing centre of the f /-tern Polynesians. !r . various Polynesian Islands there : '■■'' American scientific parties en :-.icM ■■'.! research work, in gathering in,'"m ' i;; " n s^' l '-ollectirig m.V.erial. W P ''■■■;■ "I. have the funds to equip scientific r r "'s I'M s'ciely. through our own ofTi '•''? in the islands we administer and 1 ■■•■.j!. n-a nng fiends in manv of (he • •■':<»:■., we ought to he able to get to-■ c- I'if-r a respectable Polynesian collection. No doubt manv of the old articles have ••■ sapper red. hnt there must still he a Urtre held in the existing arts and crafts which would supple abundant material. Mr- J. B. Turner's Fiji Collection. 'The comparative stud\ of the Polv-. nestan brings us in contact' with the Melanesians Between the two raees there was intermixture m the past, and for the explanation of manv thing.- peculiar to Maori \ art experts say ,v e should look to Mela-j nesia. To provide facilities for compara-| ♦iv« study, we should also hare as pood ! s Me;anes:an collection as possible. For j innately, the foundation for such a col- ■ leetion has been generously offered by i Mr J. B. Turner. Mr. Turner possesses I "tie of the finest Fijian collections owned j by a private collector. This he has offered ; to the Auckland Institute, and it only' awaits the building of tho new museum j ' ■ >•- si -pped over from Fiji. j ft is «o be hoped thai adequate ac ' mn'e-idr.tion vll he provided id the new: museum for Polynesian and Melanesian collections. Tt this is done, the Auckland' Institute will be rarrving out one of its ! objects, enunciated as' r.,r back as TS67-- ■ "to aid in the collection of materials for the history Liid b.iter understanding of *the Maori race and the allied races of the! South Pacific." Auckland, by virtue of i's geographical position, trade and trans-, port routes, is in closer touch with the! South Pacific than any other part of New ''ealand. and hence should lead the way in providing material for their historv and [ better understanding." j