GREAT MAORI CELEBRATION

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 12927, 19 March 1906, Page 6

GREAT MAORI CELEBRATION

OIMiXIXG OF A CARVED HOUSE. iFium Auckland " Herald, j Last ilonday morning the histoiic valley of Wliakarewarewa. was the scene of "a great gathering of Maoris, tribes from nearly all patts of the North Island being represented. ; There were chiefs and tribesmen from Hawkes Bay, Bay of I'lentv. -Taupo, Raglan, and Kawhia district.-;, riie Wanganui, and King Country, and oth*;■tnbal districts, when the carved Maori house was opened with all the elaborate ■ ceremonial and ritual of the ancient faith bf - the. Arawa upon such occasions. The caremony was probably.the last of its kind taat .irill ever be recorded in connection : -""-th so elaborately a carved htuse, r.r all vents in the Arawa district. The mcai'Sion. was one for the solemn religious rit-fs performed by a tohnnga ~f the anciefit peoples, and members uf .the s;iaed profession of, carving, and. , naturally, intense j„. terest wa.s taken, in it by the Maoris imd -pakehas alike.

There a large gathering of- Europeans including a number of visitors from beyond tne colony. The! Hon. J. Carroll was present, and took part in the ceremonies.

■, T e i S • ort lon S fa y 25ft wide, and ■ v 36 curved posts inside along the sides and seven at each end. It i s in the usua. form of Maori houses, with the slopg. caived barge boards above ihe- liorch siMJPorted by a great ceutre pus,. 1 munted by a tekuteku, or carved l figure .pined Rehua. The barge boards are v"^ fe—fi ® P 6in wide > and - like all ot^ er tunber work in the house, of totara heart-wood. Inside the barge board* tllen the front walL Vf>fe ge ards, - ceKtre -P° st > door - sides of the door overpiece, window sides, and inside posts have all been most elaborately -and-aiost-beautifully carved. The cai-ved" figure on ihe door is that of a woniar covered w ,£ h birds' leathers., with clatrs r 1 10S e; i'l an eagle, and head and beak ,J?™ e extmct great bird. ii, e witch named Kuringaituku. «-jk>. re-' uS? I i 1 Tf U rl" tl \ nU,I ' i! at tbe timc of a - Annva canoe, and l-.- synsf t i :: niiaveuous coiletti ju' of valur.iKt i.7;'iv> vnnn Falling i n love v.iia ; T i~ed\; " ,Imed , H::U 'Patu. she nicuiaged by sorcei-y to obtain the a> t -cji.ieacv h'm, and took hini to reside with hir at Atiamuri. Lndently the domestic re l itionslnp was incongruous e&ough to justuy Havupatu m the idea that a separ..*,- ;, summary as possible, was desir, :,le ": iat i one day when his ancient and hide,,us hunting birds he po,.se„ L ,i til 1 ff • 11 , 1 0f ljer »'-vi Se. otr in ;v hurry for the kain-a . f his / rCfedom " The little/biro that so oi L en ta. K es a part in such afi'aii.- turned 'SrZ Rpe .° f the litt!e ?he harbinger ot»spring, which Hew after th« fHcTo* ber AV^th t,:e Itl he i' " TC . rs -'eparture. Proi ! ,j ! tiv imaged Kuimgaituku gave c!ias-j caugut up on the fugitive at a pluc* called reuni, but the wily Hatupntu wi?elv disappeared into a great stone, and the Uuiv'.s claws reaching out for him made deep scratches on the stone, tiu d the marks -if main t° this day. Wl*n she thought of looking round the stone she saw Haun.-i-u sprinting for dear life down tbe "K'v and she again set out in chase, vorn - close to the fugitive at Whakare-An-u-." a ,;-" mewhafc tiring lun all the v ;! - Sfrt fT Hatupatu sli p! *d av. ; -v m the shrubbery, and the wit,h. i„ ;i '- temptmg to follow, fell into ;i boiliL spring with the result that she departed this life in torment fcr her sins The T m ,l ls . Ji , oTr k ?<>wn as Whi:nga]iipiro. On the window piece the figure of patms so that when the dcor is closed the witeh may be seen him "i? ! ' ide of tke " «I«»S 5ni P ■re" 11 ' 1 '"? " b ' iiJ "» s.one. The carved centre po!,-. vui.iiirt«g the gable, is a wonder.nip Jew of camng. At the bottom oi it i, the lignrl of Trnirau a chief of the legendan- Hawauki. He had twin children, who were jomed together like the twins, and the joined figures of the offspring are above him. Incidentallv it mav be mentioned that the chief one day noticed S 1 / 17 " 15 t0 row :1 t;1E0 «, but one wa ?" and the other the other, the canoe spun round ia circles. _The chief therefore cut them apart, and they ; lived to many and have issue. Above the image of the twins again are two fef rf'W °i De "P reseatß Kataoie, a pet oW by the chief Tangaioa-a-Mihi. 1 i natw of the Ngatitua tribe killed this lizard, which action caused bloody war be. tween these two fribes of the Arawa S?f l C ' Tb ® lizard was Rangiitito; was also a, pet, belonging to Tane Whakaraka, of.-the Arawa people. Ai>not meefc a violent end, so" no, history is attached to it. Inside the porch, on the ndge-pole, are further splendid specimens of old carving, representing two chiefs and a woman. The carvings on the barge boards, while valuable specimens of the old time art of the native nice, cio not bear any symbolic reference. The peculiarity of thesa old native houses is that they are not built level, but slope towards the back, and therefore while the front posts are Bft- in height the rear ones are something less than 7ft, and the ridge slopes accordingly. The amamaihi or supports of the barge boards, are also a perfect maze of carved circles and curves. AH the carved inside posts are symbolical of deceased, Xgatirangitihi chiefs', and the work Ms been carried out on a great and elaborate scale. At the bottom of each

port, isihfc carved'head of the ch»«f aw hj« appeared .hi Jifej and the upper portion < f the pr.it »k .<vniboHcfl!-->f 'him as he fcr supposed to be after descending into To Rejnga, the Hade* of the Maori belief. Tiiere are many curious ;iiwrits f<: lliiv form of icpreMuiting the chief. t'lic <»f the ni-.sl interesting is I hat it is a I race of the Aryan uiigin of the Maori, and a survival of the Semitic law. which i* aH<» copied iu the Kw«ot of Mvihtotnf!. t3i.it there .be nu image of man c«r .uinnl inside the dwelling tiiat might be worshipped, and tii.it the Maori* w <"nt r">und this law by c;irviue ■•nly ilie head of the chief as lie _ was "in life, and the chief himself as he 2s iu Hades. >earcc!y .in <hjct" oi worship. The roof covering is of triwi tushes, and Ln.s'de the n«>f is covered with kak;iho rteds, the tai'tcts Ij-.ing devuvitt s with old arabesque p«iuli;.g. aral»e><|ut. ogain. perhaps by rc-wm «<t the law al* ready rdefetned 10. Between cacti |m' ni<? elaborate panels, worked in difTercnl designs, and made of l.»;lis and iceds, tho figures being in white and black kiekie. The whole of the panels wese "the design of Rella. the well-ktiown WhakartwatewA guide. Tlie floor of she house is covered with beautifully worked naiiw nirveis who completed the carrir.gs fcr the liouse were X<-kep.»pua and Tenewitivrc. and there wa» also present a? the ww. moiiy. Anulia fe Rahu.i. of the Uenukuk-t pako tribe, the oldest carver now living.