The Pulpit of Tikitiki Maori Church: The church was opened in 1925 as a Maori Soldiers' Memorial for the East Coast District. It was decorated by Arawa carvers from Rotorua, under the direction of Eramiha Kapua, a member of a famous carving family of Ngati Tarawhai hapu. Some local Ngati Porou carvers began their training there, and afterwards continued at Rotorua, when the school of Maori Arts and Crafts was established. The difficulty of obtaining local carvers for the Tikitiki Church as Sir Apirana Ngata wrote afterwards, drew pointed attention to the imminent passing of the carving art. This realisation was the reason behind the establishment of a school of Maori Arts and Crafts at Rotorua. A builder's apprentice on the Tikitiki Church undertaking was Mr R. J. Wills, of Gisborne, who has since built almost every major carved house Photo: National Publicity Studios