THE MUSEUMS OF NEW ZEALAND

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 79, Issue 5, 15 November 1949, Page 523

THE MUSEUMS OF NEW ZEALAND

JN the first article in this series, which appeared in the October * issue of the “Journal,” Enid B. V. Phillips traced the growth of museums generally and described the Dominion Museum, Wellington. This month she deals with the formation and development of the Otago and Canterbury Museums.

The Otago Museum

THE Otago Museum was established primarily as a A natural history museum and its nucleus consisted of the rocks and natural history specimens collected by Dr. (later Sir) James Hector for the extremely successful New Zealand Exhibition held in Dunedin in 1865. The first meeting of the museum committee took place on July 1. 1868; the -Provincial Government made its initial appropriation for museum purposes in 1873 and the. Old Block in King Street was built in 1876-77, being opened as a public, museum on August 11, 1877, with Captain Frederick Woolaston Hutton as curator. Hutton’s catalogues of New Zealand birds, fishes, and mollusca had been compiled several years previously.

In addition to the notornis (a most beautifully ~preserved specimen 19}in. high, with vivid plumage of peacock blue, olive green, and indigo), the museum has mounted examples of native birds only recently extinct: The New Zealand quail, the screech-owl, the huia, the Stephen Island wren, the Chatham Island rail and fern-bird, the MacQuarrie Island rail, the Auckland Island merganser (the only seaduck in New Zealand), and the New Zealand thrush. The sole spirit-preserved specimens of the two last-named species are also in the museum. Thanks to Professor Brian Marples’s flair for field work the museum possesses more penguin fossils than those of all the rest of the world's museums put together, and rare birds are represented by the stitch-bird, the saddleback, and two varieties of wattled crow. Ferocious Rhinoceros In the '-mammal section a two-horned Sumatran rhinoceros of gargantuan girth and ferocious mien has a claim to world fame, there being only six mounted specimens in existence, and this one is probably unique in that its skeleton has been preserved also. Its local prestige is due to its position as guardian of the door, and it is a well-known fact that,the parental threat “Be good or the rhino will get' you" has the power to intimidate the most boisterous youngster into near-perfect behaviour on his first visit to the museum. Dr: H. D. Skinner, who succeeded Sir William Benham as Director, reports a perpetual influx of elderly visitors whose principal purpose in making a pilgrimage to the museum is to see once again the monster which frightened them in their youth. The new wing added to the north side of the museum in 1909 was named after the first lecturer in surgery at the University of Otago, Dr. Thomas Morland Hocken, who published that standard reference work "Bibliography of the Literature Relating to New Zealand" that same year, having donated earlier, his extensive library of New Zealand books, prints, maps, and MSS. to the museum. Twenty years later a similar extension was made to the south side, this modern structure being skilfully designed to harmonise with the Victorian architecture exemplified by the original building. It was called the Fels Wing in honour of Willi .Fels. the museum's chief benefactor, who not only gave generously of his wealth and knowledge (and as a. connoisseur of arts and crafts he had no superior in this country), but created the Department of Anthropology and endowed it with his own magnificent collections, every item of his . gift being “meticulously catalogued in his neat handwriting." • Boyhood Collections - He began collecting during his boyhood in Germany, coins . and stamps being his first loves. Soon after he arrived in New Zealand in 1888 to enter the head office of the New Zealand Clothing Factory (better known as Hallenstein Bros.) he turned his attention to Maori and Oceanic material and during the next decade he commenced the collecting of oriental arms-. ' Ceramics and choice glass, too, appealed to him, as did objets, d'art from India. Persia, Burma, and Japan, and Sir Francis Younghusband.

the famous explorer, contributed a number of pieces to his Tibetan collection.. But always his chief pleasure lay in his Greek and Roman coins, of which he had over 5000. Classifying and arranging these proved an absorbing occupation throughout the last years of his life. Classical Tastes Reflected in Garden The garden at his home. "Manono" (the Samoan equivalent of his surname, which means "rock, - ’ both words signifying durability),-also reflected his classical tastes, and gentians from the Italian hills grew there as happily as the hardiest of native shrubs, and cyclamens that once flowered amid some ancient Grecian ruins flourished among the ferns he brought back in such plenitude from his frequent travels in New Zealand. And at all times it was his joy to share his garden's .bounty with others./ Of this sterling citizen, upon whom the King conferred the C.M.G. for'his outstanding contribution to the culture of the community, there is surely no more endearing word-portrait than that penned by the Director of the Otago Museum: "One likes best to remember him in the happy setting of his own home, presiding at his table with courtly, hospitality, entertaining some small boy—he was always at his best

with children —discussing art and literature, or looking through his treasures with interested guests and friends.” Among the Greek pottery and sculpture presented to the museum in memory of the late Willi Fels is the head of a woman in marble, said to be from one of the metopes of the Parthenon and the only specimen of Parthenonic sculpture in any collection outside Europe. An alabaster head of Pan is another aestheticallypleasing piece, also a hydria (handled water-jar) of black-figured Attic ware belonging to the 6th century B.C. and showing Hercules in his chariot, his companion Hippocrates being almost hidden by the plunging horses. The scene where Ulysses and his men escape from the blind Cyclops’ cave by clinging to the wool on the under-

side of the giant’s rams as they were let out to graze forms the decorative motif on . a graceful lekythos (oil vessel). ' , High Ideal of Service Some of these pieces as well as many exhibits from the Melanesian and Polynesian . collections were sketched in black and white by Miss Lily Atty Daff (the officer in charge of exhibition from 1933 to within a month or two of her death in 1945) for the museum guide books, Dr. Skinner supplying the text. She designed the crest in present use, the snow-capped peak of Mt. Aspiring, symbolising the high ideal of service to which the museum aspires, and her line drawings in connection with Polynesian ethnography which were featured in the “Journal of the Polynesian Society”

are the finest of their kind ever to be published in the Dominion. But it was in the realm of colour that she displayed her greatest genius, and her exquisitely-tinted paintings of native birds proved her to be without peer in this branch of art. Dr. Coolidge, of Washington, a member of the American delegation of scientists which recently visited New Zealand, said that he had never seen anything so beautiful' of its kind as her exhibition case illustrating colour in the animal kingdom. Triumph over Lack of Knowledge Fortunate 1 indeed were the young folk who flocked to the Friday afternoon drawing class instituted by this brilliant and much-loved artist, who, though prevented by the poverty of her /London girlhood from obtaining more than a fragmentary part of the art tuition to which her talents entitled her, nevertheless triumphed over lack of technical knowledge by sheer ability and painstaking diligence and did all in her power to foster in a

practical manner the artistic gifts of the children with whom she came into contact.

Canterbury Museum

What Canterbury Museum lacks in Maori articles it makes up for by way of moa bones, some of the specimens found in the Glenmark swamp when the museum carried out field work there as far back as 1868 still being on display today. Other skeletons of these enormous wingless birds were sent overseas in exchange for foreign zoological and ethnographical material, thus greatly augmenting the museum’s general collections. /. Investigations commenced in North Canterbury in 1939 revealed a remarkable deposit of moa bones, many complete skeletons being unearthed, and the latest efforts of the staff engaged in excavations in Pyramid Valley

area, near Waikari, have yielded moa bones by the truck load. The largest consignment to date comprised 68 skeletons, all carefully indexed and carried in numbered containers, except for the biggest bones, which reposed on top •of the boxes, and it is ■calculated that their recovery necessitated the removal of 933 cubic'yards of soil — mean feat of digging. In fact, the total number of moa skeletons found in this particular 1 acre of swamp on the property of Mr. Joseph Hodgen is 148, these figures considerably exceeding the number of skeletons known in all other museums of the, world. The Pyramid Valley discoveries have aroused such widespread interest among the public that the authorities are planning to publish in the near future an illustrated brochure giving the full particulars. Ferdinand von Hochstetter’s reconstruction of the moa is the subject of an old steel engraving in the museum. This distinguished Austrian scientist visited New Zealand with the Novara expedition in 1858 to report on the country’s geological features and had as one of his assistants , the youthful but much-travelled Julius von Haast, who - had arrived in the colony only the day before and was later to become Provincial Geologist and discoverer of the pass on the OtagoCanterbury mountain boundary which is named -after him and founder of the Canterbury Museum. (He was also geologist for the Lyttelton tunnel scheme and was responsible for the discovery of artesian water beneath the city of Christchurch.)

Gothic-style Building The first portion of the present structure of mist-grey stone was erected in 1870 after the Gothic style. Success attended the venture from the outset and . within the short space of 2 years a two-story wing was added, and in 1876 the,second wing, as substantial as the first, ,was built to face the Antigua Street", (now Rolleston Avenue) frontage,'the entrance porch bearing the inscription. "Lo, these are

Literary Award Won with “Royal Visitors to New Zealand’’ Articles

THE New Zealand Women Writers’ and Artists’ Society's Browning Cup, a new literary award open for annual competition among society members, has been won this year by Mrs. E. B. V. Phillips, lady editor of the "Journal," for the best published prose from July, 1947, to June, 1949. The entry submitted by Mrs. Phillips was the series of articles "Royal Visitors to New Zealand," which appeared in the February, March, April, May, and June issues of the "Journal." Mrs. Phillips is perhaps better known to readers of the "Journal" as "Mary," under which name she has written articles for the women's section for the past 6 years.

parts of his ways: but how little a portion is heard of him.” (The source of this happily-chosen inscription is the Book of Job, 26.14.) The last permanent addition was made in 1882, only temporary buildings having been put up since, such as the shelter for the Maori House and an annexe for the largest skeleton of .the largest species of whale in the world, the southern blue whale, which was washed ashore at Okarito, South Westland, in 1908. This skeleton is 87ft. long and is estimated to weigh 9 tons.. In addition, a room was built for the relief model of Canterbury, occupying 1200 sq. ft., which was constructed by the Public Works Department for the New Zealand Centennial Exhibition in 1940 and which was the gift of the Government to the museum. Trilby the Tuatara Although needing no larger abode than a corner of a showcase, Trilby the Tuatara successfully vies with the Okarito whale in popular interest, for his lineage dates back to when reptiles reigned supreme on the earth and mammals had not yet attained such gigantic stature and importance in the world of nature. Tuataras are a longlived race and Trilby was no exception to this rule, being in all probability 200 years, old when his owner, the redoubtable warrior chief Te Kooti presented him as a token of regard to Mr. A. M. Johnson, Opawa, in- the early 1860’s, and for fully 50 years he was the star attraction of Johnson’s Fish Ponds. He still appeared to be hale and hearty at the time of the clearing sale in 1937, but he evidently

did not take kindly to the change and he died shortly afterward; his remains now rest in state on a 'rock by a fleshyfooted shearwater (one of the sea petrels) in the museum. The friendship between Hochstetter and Haast not only •. resulted in /New Zealand's being exceptionally Well represented in the Imperial Museum. Vienna, of which Hochstetter was appointed Director-General in l r >76, but also led to valuable exchanges of material between European and New Zealand museums. Moreover, Hochstetter ' was instrumental in securing the . services of his countryman Andreas Reischek, a taxidermist, to help Haast. Reischek found so much to interest him in the colony that he stayed 12 years instead of 2, and assisted- with the arranging of the collections in the Auckland and Wanganui Museums as well. In company with his devoted dog. Caesar, he made many an expedition throughout the country and adjacent islands to collect specimens of native flora and fauna. Unique Collection

The relics of the. "moa-hunters." the first "Maoris" to migrate here from Polynesia and a people wnose existence was first demonstrated by Haast during his explorations in North Otago and Canterbury.- form the nucleus of the unique collection now supplemented by the stone adzes, necklaces of moa-bone beads shaped like the teeth of sperm whales, pendants of whale ivory, and other prized possessions discovered by J. R. Eyles. then a schoolboy, at the Wairau Estuary, Marlborough, in 1939. In the course of digging for Maori relics in this district Eyles unearthed the burial place of the chiefs of the moa-hunters

A recent discovery which would rejoice the heart of any museum official, let alone a specialist in Maori and Polynesian ethnology like the Director of the Canterbury Museum. R. S. Duff, is an ancient wood carving cut with stone implements in totara which was dug up by C. C. Stanley during draining . operations in a swamp midway between the Opihi and Orari rivers, near Temuka. and about 3 miles distant from, the sea. It passed unnoticed amid the other finds of swamp totara and was recognised •as of human handiwork only when Mr. Stanley was preparing to chop up the timber for firewood some weeks later. Fortunately the relic was spared from the axe and brought into the museum, where urgent treatment was given to ensure its. preservation. At the present time the carving has no parallels in New Zealand and is possibly the earliest example' known of the woodcarving art of the tribes who preceded the Maori fleet of 1350 A.D. Fine Arts Collections Eastern civilisations are illustrated by fine arts collections, Mrs. W. A. Moore having donated much of the Japanese material collected by her father, the late Sir Joseph Kinsey, founder of, the shipping firm and attorney for Scott's two polar expeditions and one of Shackleton's. (The shipping magnate’s popularity with members of these polar expeditions can be gauged from the letter dated December 8, 1901, which Captain Scott wrote him shortly before the Discovery sailed from Lyttelton: '’Champagne is, with us. a luxury reserved for very

and thus enabled the museum to add invaluable' specimens to its collection. Indeed. Dr. R. C. Murphy, of the American Museum of Natural History. New York, considers this exhibit cannot fail to thrill the most critically minded of museum men. The Chinese have a saying that one picture is worth 10.000 words. a truth peculiarly well demonstrated by all that is pictured to the mind's eye in that single museum case. 1 Primitive , Cultures The Canterbury Museum possesses countless objects representative of the primitive cultures of other countries, and because of its close proximity to Lyttelton, the port used by all shipping to and from the Chatham Islands, situated some 400 miles east, it has acquired an excellent Moriori collection, including the replica of a carved wooden figure closely resembling Easter Island designs, the only known Moriori cloak, the only example of the Moriori quarter-staff', a large raft canoe, and quaint circular fish-hooks of stone. The inhabitants of- these islands were an offshoot of the moa-hunters in New Zealand, betaking themselves to the islands during the rnoa-hunter period. They suffered dreadful decimation through the musket fire of invading Taranaki tribes in 1835 and from that time the race began to dwindle with disturbing rapidity. By 1933, with the death of jovial Te Rangitapua. King Tommy Solomon, a veritable mountain of a man who turned the scale at 28 stone, there was not a single Moriori of pure-blooded stock remaining.

high days and holidays, but such ‘occasions’ have already occurred often enough to shew how much we all appreciate it. I may therefore in the name, of my mess mates thank you most sincerely for your very kind present and assure you that nothing could be more acceptable. Our wine caterer (Dr. Wilson) is so stony hearted that I shall have to shew him your note to prevent the liquor being annexed as ‘medical comforts.’ We shall very cordially drink your health in the magnums and. feel most grateful to think that you are honouring us at the same time. With thanks for your good wishes, believe me, Yours sincerely R. F. , Scott.” The missive, which bears the British Antarctic Expedition’s royal-blue crest, a ship’s lifebelt enclosing a solitary penguin standing on an ice-field, is now among the treasures of the Turnbull Library, Wellington.) Some of Sir Joseph’s cloisonne and jade curios are in the Chinese collection, which includes the late Staff-Sergeant-Major Sutherland’s treasures from Pekin, gathered after the Boxer rebellion of 1900, - and the Bailey collection of primitive metal ware (the pewter vessels belonging to the Ming period (1368-1644) being lacquered), early glazed ware dating from the T’ang, Sung, and Yuan dynasties (681-1368), and brilliantly-glazed Imperial porcelain of the period of Ch’ien Lung (1736-1775). Contributions from Rewi Alley Among the articles forwarded from time to time by Rewi Alley, formerly of Christchurch and founder of the Chinese Industrial Co-operatives and famous Bailie School and experimental

farm at Sandan, Central China, is an iron helmet worn by a Mongol warrior who fought under Genghis Khan, a bronze bowl and socketed adze belonging to the Han dynasty (206 8.C.220 A.D.), T'ang bronzes and baked clay figures (681-906), sword coinage, the gold embroidered uniform of a Manchu Banner commander, a mandarin's hat and buttons of rank, and figures of deities from a lamasery in Inner Mongolia. Since the outbreak of civil war in China he has sent various additions to this material, which have been brought back to New Zealand and personally delivered to the museum by CORSO officials and members of the Friends’ Ambulance Unit, his latest gifts being a celadon bowl of Sung porcelain (960-1279) and a piece of Chinese pottery of the neolithic period. Thanks largely to Rewi Alley the museum in his home town, now has a complete display of Chinese ceramics from 3000 B.C. to 1700 A.D. Mrs. Moore also contributed to the exhibits of English , and Continental pottery, the late J. H. Seager being another benefactor. This section con- 1 tains one of the 50 existing copies of the Portland vase reproduced by Josiah Wedgwood. The original, of carved onyx glass, was found in a Roman emperor’s tomb; it was once the property of the Duke of Portland and is now in the British Museum, its purchase price being over 30,000 guineas. Ships Modelled to Scale Of particular interest to masculine visitors is the series of ships modelled to scale, specially noteworthy being the Viking long boat from the period

600 A.D., the Santa Maria of Christopher Columbus (1492), a sailing ship fashioned in bone by French prisoners of war during the Napoleonic campaigns, Captain Cook’s Resolution, in which he made his'voyages of exploration in the Antarctic and the Pacific, the Bounty, commanded by Captain Bligh, whose crew mutinied on a trip to the South Seas to obtain specimens of the bread fruit tree, and the East Indiaman Charlotte Jane and her three sister ships which brought the first settlers to Canterbury in December, 1850. Dundonald Coracle Most amazing, of all is the Dundonald coracle, the crude framework being constructed of crooked sticks and covered with skin or cloth. It conveyed the castaways from the barque Dundonald, wrecked on Disappointment Island, west of the Auckland group, in March, 1907, to the main island, where there was a depot containing clothes and food. The museum is particularly rich in mementos of polar exploration, as Lyttelton was frequently a port of call for such expeditions. ' v ' A valuable Polynesian collection was obtained by the present Director during the visit to Britain which preceded his appointment. Acquired by gift or exchange from British museums, the artifacts include relics of the voyages of Vancouver and Cook and collections made by the Rev. William Ellis and other early workers of the London Missionary Society. The collections come from Hawaii, the Marquesas, Tahiti, and the Cook, Austral, and Tongan groups.