• Tū te Whaihanga Showcase 6

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.


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