THE MAORI BUILDS—Life, Art and Architecture from Moahunter Days

Te Ao Hou, September 1967, Page 61

THE MAORI BUILDS—Life, Art and Architecture from Moahunter Days by Alan Taylor Illustrations by W. A. Taylor Whitcombe & Tombs Ltd, $1.75 reviewed by W. J. Phillipps A production of more than usual interest has appeared from the joint efforts of Alan and W. A. Taylor. Its appearance is most opportune, for information on Maori houses and their construction is not readily available. The artistic work shows some skill and ability, but the exact origin of the source material is not always indicated as has been the custom in recent literature on such subjects. Types of huts have been classified under various headings such as ‘Moa Hunter Phase. 850–1350’, ‘Classic Phase, 1350–1769’, and the ‘Early European Contact Phase 1769–1860’. This is a difficult subject, requiring much background information on the types, and I feel that author and illustrator have shown their lack of experience in this field. I am reminded, for instance, of the tree fern huts in Maori communities seen during my boyhood—cool in summer, warm in winter, and reasonably malleable in the trunks which formed the walls. These trunks could be snugly packed together and were almost inflammable. Who shall now say that the moa hunter of the year 1,000 AD did not discover this, and use such huts for his gear and utensils? Thus, the difficulties of classification become obvious. Tree fern huts flourished in Otago last century. Early visitors to these shores occasionally

accepted the hospitality of the family wharepuni (warm house) for the night, every aperture being closed up to exclude air. As recorded by these visitors, the night was spent in an atmosphere of intense heat. The Maori living in a state of near nudity could apparently tolerate this high night temperature, while his European guest scarce dared to move. This brings us to the importance of the building with the floor two feet below ground level and earth walls packed up at the sides (D.M. Monograph 8, fig. 8). Archaeologists have recently demonstrated the use of this house by the ancient Britons. Perhaps Moa hunter man used it too. In the light of this, the house figured on page 15 of the Taylors' book seems to me to be not a true replica of any sleeping hut or meeting house. The illustration showing the amo, or bargeboards, reaching down to ground level is to be deplored. Decay would quickly set in on the lower margins of such boards, and wet and damp would be a constant nuisance during winter. The view inside the house does not show any interior excavation likely to have been carried out for warmth at night. The book should have included the type of house seen by Captain Cook in Queen Charlotte Sound, where outside crossed rafters hold the thatch in place. (loc. cit. 8, fig. 5) Sir Peter Buck (The Coming of the Maori, in 1929, a Cawthron lecture, 2nd edition, p. 29) was the first to point out the importance of the oval house in the South Island, as northern tribes moved southwards. Mutton birders' huts were studied in a search for prototypes of older buildings persisiting in this marginal culture area. Possibly such a building may be seen in D.M. Monograph 8, fig. 35. To conclude, the book ‘The Maori Builds’ shows too much generalisation and supposition, and not enough reliance on exact scientific data. In their presentation of houses, both writer and artist appear to have used their imagination, without a sturdy enough framework. An example is the ‘sewing’ on the house illustrated on page 9. Again too, we may mention the importance of exact locality and source literature. Extracts appear to have been taken from other publications, and drawings made from previously published photographs, without specific references being given. A collection of such material from various publications (some now unavailable), presented in an attractive compact form, with complete references, would be a most useful and valuable production.