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Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum -
Kaitaka 1886.21.20 Pitt Rivers Museum
Kaitaka cloak
Muka harakeke, kiri me te huruhuru kurī, tae māori pango me te parauri
Flax fibre, dog skin and hair, traditional black and brown dyes
“He māhiti ki runga, he paepaeroa ki raro” he tohu nō te rangatira. Kua āta whatu ki te muka rāwhiti, ki te muka tarapī, me he pīngao te pai. He whatu aho-rua te kaupapa, he areare, e kitea mai ai tōna taiea, i te tuawhiti o tōna muka me te huahuatau o ngā mahi ā te ringarehe. Me kore hoki te tāniko me ngā tāpaetanga kiri kurī, huruhuru kurī kei tōna remu. E mau ana a Joseph Banks tētahi kaitaka e tino taurite ana, he mea waituhi e Benjamin West.
“He māhiti ki runga, he paepaeroa ki raro” basically means ‘fit for a chief’. This majestic cloak or kaitaka is very finely woven from muka carefully selected for its fineness, sheen and colour. The main body (kaupapa) is completely undecorated, woven in the two-pair weft (whatu aho-rua) which reveals the quality of the muka and the fineness and perfection of its workmanship, which is also reflected in the outstanding tāniko boarder with the additional dog skin and dog hair at the bottom. One such garment is shown in the painting of Joseph Banks done by Benjamin West.
On loan from Pitt Rivers Museum 1886.21.20
HE KUPU TĀPIRIHANGA
He mukunga kōkōwai
He momo uku whero te kōkōwai, inā tahuna, ka ranumia kit e hinu mangō, ka puta te momo kano hei tāpae kit e whakairo, kit e raranga harakeke me te whakarākai anō I te tangata, arā, te ngārahu. He mea whakahirahira ki te Māori, inā hoki e whakapapa ana ki te orokohanganga o te ao, te ahuahunga o te wahine tuatahi ki ngā one tapu i Kurawaka.
Kōkōwai (red ochre) markings
Kōkōwai is a red coloured clay, when burnt and mixed with shark-liver oil, forms a type of pigment that is applied to carvings, flax weaving and used for personal adornment, particularly warrior chiefs. It was highly valued by Māori, as it has a direct whakapapa (connection) to Māori traditions of creation, including the first women mounded from the sacred soil at Kurawaka.
Taura here
E mau tonu ana ngā taura here o tēnei kaitaka, he mea tāmiro, ā, he mea tāpona ki te ua.
Tying cord (taura here)
The tying cords (taura here) at the top (ua) of this kaitaka remain intact. They are rolled taura here.
Poka
Ko ngā poka hei whakaāhua i te kākahu, e pai ai tana noho ki ngā pokohiwi me ngā hope, e tau tika ai ki te tinana o te kaimau.
Poka (shaping)
Shaping lines were used to make the kākahu fit more closely over the shoulders and across the hips.
He whiringa pīrahirahi
He whiringa pīrahirahi kei tētahi pito o tēnei kaitaka. Ko te pito tauaro, he whenu tāpiri, he tāmirotanga whenu-takitoru. Inā whakamaua tēnei kākahu, ko te pito whiringa pīrahirahi ka noho areare.
Side plaited border
A narrow plaited border along one side. The opposite side has a whenu tāpiri (finished edge warps) completed with a three-ply twist. The narrow plaited border side would have been the revealed side when worn.
Tāniko
Ko te mahinga tāniko, kua tātaitia ki te tauira e kīia nei ko te whakarua kōpito, me te nihi taniwha. Kua tātorutia te tauira tāniko whakaruakōpito hei te remu, ā, he kōtuituinga kiri me te toenga huruhuru kurī kei raro ake I ēnei tauira.
Tāniko
The tāniko design on this kaitaka includes the diamond shaped pattern called the whakarua kōpito, including the niho taniwha design. The whakarua kōpito pattern is repeated three times along the bottom (remu) with the dog skin and remaining hair stitched below this particular pattern.
Kiri me te huruhuru kurī
Kua kōtuituia ngā kiri me te huruhuru kurī kit e remu o tēnei kaitaka, mā te ngira kōiwi pīrahirahi. He mea tātai ki raro iho I ngā tauira tāniko e kīia nei ko te whakarua kōpito.
Dog skin and hair
The dog skin and hair strips have been stitched on to the bottom (remu), using a fine bone needle. These strips have been applied under the whakarua kōpito design.
Ambrotype, possibly of Lucy and her daughter Ida Tiffen
The museum is offered many interesting items for the collection over the course of the year. Often they are seemingly ordinary, everyday objects, but what makes each of them special and worthy of collecting is the wonderful stories they can tell us about our region’s history. This wicker basket is certainly one such object. This basket was used by William Hamilton (known as Ham) Hannah (b. 1920, d.1967) to deliver bread for Walter Findlay’s Bakery in the 1930s. Ham would have delivered bread around Gisborne by horse and cart. A few people out there may remember having bread delivered by him, perhaps using this basket! Ham served as a Driver in the Army Service Corps in the Second World War and continued to work as a driver when he returned to Gisborne after the war. In the 1960s, he was the Custodian at Churchill Park. He was married to Sarah (Sadie) and they had four children. We would like to thank Julie Hannah for gifting her father-in-law’s breadbasket to the museum.
Ham and two of his four children, Kevin (left) and Gareth (right), posing in the basket in the garden of the family’s home.
Walter Findlay’s advert, The Gisborne Herald, 20 October 1941
Weight on the back of Te Kuri a Paoa by Peggy Ericson
The museum is offered many interesting items for the collection over the course of the year. Often they are seemingly ordinary, everyday objects, but what makes each of them special and worthy of collecting is the wonderful stories they can tell us about our region’s history. This wicker basket is certainly one such object. This basket was used by William Hamilton (known as Ham) Hannah (b. 1920, d.1967) to deliver bread for Walter Findlay’s Bakery in the 1930s. Ham would have delivered bread around Gisborne by horse and cart. A few people out there may remember having bread delivered by him, perhaps using this basket! Ham served as a Driver in the Army Service Corps in the Second World War and continued to work as a driver when he returned to Gisborne after the war. In the 1960s, he was the Custodian at Churchill Park. He was married to Sarah (Sadie) and they had four children. We would like to thank Julie Hannah for gifting her father-in-law’s breadbasket to the museum.
Ham and two of his four children, Kevin (left) and Gareth (right), posing in the basket in the garden of the family’s home.
Walter Findlay’s advert, The Gisborne Herald, 20 October 1941
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 11
Kōauau flute Paepae hamuti latrine Turuturu weaving peg Waka huia treasure box
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 5 and 7
Hoe paddles
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 9
Tātua belt Kahu kurī dog-skin cloak
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 13
Patu Parāhe Brass patu
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 12
Te Pou o Hinematioro
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 8
Mētara Koroneihana a Hōri III George III Coronation medalet
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 2
Patu ōnewa weapon Wahaika weapon Patu Parāoa weapon Kotiate weapon
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 10
Tātua belt Heru Comb Rei-puta whale-tooth necklace Aurei cloak pin Poro-toroa Albatross toggle Kapeu ear pendant
Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 4
Pākē rain cape
Hamuera by Erena Koopu
Hamuera by Erena Koopu, 2018 Acrylic and graphite on canvas, 710mm diameter This work by Erena Koopu was part of the exhibition Hei ō Mō Apanui | Iwi Sustenance held at Tairāwhiti Museum in 2018 and purchased by the Friends of Tairāwhiti Museum for the collection. He waiata a ringa (an action song) Performed by Te Kapa Haka o Te Whānau a Apanui at Te Matatini in the year 2005 in Palmerston North. Nō te tau 2004 ka whakaturehia e te kāwanatanga te pire takutai moana, e riro ai te taitara o te papa moana, tōna ritenga, he muru whenua. I taua tau rā, ko Tāriana Tūria te wahine toa o Reipa kāore i tautokona taua pire, ā, ko ētahi atu o ana hoa mema Māori, i tautoko tonu. He waiata-ā-ringa tēnei e kōrero ana ki aua mema rā, kia aro ki ngā tohutohu a ngā poropiti Māori, kei reira te māramatanga e noho ana. In 2004 the Government passed the controversial Foreshore and Seabed Bill, which transferred title to the crown, and in itself is a form of modern day confiscation. In that same year, Tāriana Tūria, Māori MP of Labour crossed the floor, while the rest of her Māori colleagues remained seated. This action song speaks to those seated members, and urges them to remember the lessons of past Māori prophets, as clarity must resides in their messages.
The museum’s collections are always growing and on this page we share some of the highlights. Our thanks to the donors for their support.
Donating to the collection
Visit our Donations page for more information.
Research and access
Researchers can view collections that are not on display by making an appointment with the Museum Collection Manager. Staff can also take small group tours through the collection storage facilities by appointment. Please note that staff are not always available immediately and it is advisable to make arrangements as far in advance as possible, particularly if you are only visiting Gisborne for a short period.
Researchers who are unable to visit in person can make their enquiry by email, letter or telephone
