This blog was originally published in Issue 31 of Garland Magazine, 1 June 2023. For Isaac Te Awa, poi is not only an accessory for dazzling performances, it is also a traditional Māori instrument used for practical and cultural reasons in itself. I have always found something hypnotic about seeingRead more
Te Papa recently acquired three hei karaka woven by Tangimoe Clay (Te Whakatōhea) in Ōpōtiki, in the eastern Bay of Plenty. The lei or hei karaka is a form of necklace or adornment. Mātauranga Māori Curator Issac Te Awa describes the hei karaka and how this collection represents a modernRead more
Harakeke, or New Zealand flax, was of vital importance to Māori. It was the most significant source of fibre and had a multitude of uses from making ropes, clothing, mats, and baskets. Like many other museums, we hold a large number of taonga made from harakeke. For many of theRead more
Members of Te Papa’s whānau recently established an informal Takatāpui Rainbow Sharing group. The group is open to all Te Papa kaimahi and acts as a hub to share information on collections and upcoming events (internal and external) relating to our various communities. To mark this year’s Wellington Pride Festival Tū Whakahīhī e Te Whanganui-ā-Tara (3–17 September) some of our members have written about what Pride means to them.Read more
The star Ururangi (Greek: Merope) is the star associated with the winds. Curator Mātauranga Māori Isaac Te Awa talks about how the start Ururangi connects to taonga in our collection.Read more
Te Papa has approximately 68 tokotoko in our collection representing all time periods, and this year, Mātauranga Māori Curator Isaac Te Awa acquired two more. However, these ones are slightly different from the more common style.Read more
In this blog curators Isaac Te Awa and Katie Cooper use objects and photographs from our collection to explore some of the strategies used in the past to produce and preserve food.Read more
