The following is a kustom stori of the Roviana people of the Western Solomon Islands; the story of Tiola, a banara (chief) in Solomon Islands mythology and the origin of the nguzunguzu, the prow figureheads used by the islands’ tribes.Read more
During the recent expedition to central Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands, my job was to document the ferns and lycophytes. This was at the invitation of Marika Tuiwawa (University of South Pacific) who led the expedition’s plant team. It built on my previous experience working with ferns in Fiji, NewRead more
Valevahalo was the main camp for our recent Solomon Islands’ expedition. Sited at about 800 m above sea level, it is deep in the jungle of the northern foothills of Guadalcanal’s Mount Popomanaseu. I was there for eight nights, with two additional nights at a satellite camp at the nearby Haviha River.Read more
In September I was part of an expedition into jungle in the centre of Guadalcanal island in the Solomon Islands, tropical western Pacific. The purpose was to document the plants and animals present. My job was to help with the ferns. The mountains at the centre of Guadalcanal are rugged,Read more
Grace Hutton (Collection Manager Pacific Cultures) introduces us to Nguzunguzu, the guardians of war canoes from the Solomon Islands. With Kesoko (a water spirit) putting travelling crew members at risk, Nguzunguzu were secured to the prow of every departing war canoe to ensure their safe passage. In the 1800s, on theRead more
Every four years, an enormous event called the Festival of Pacific Arts is held in a different part of the Pacific. It is one of the most significant pan-Pacific gatherings where island nations from across Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia meet to share their arts – customary and contemporary – andRead more
Te Papa’s curator of terrestrial vertebrates Dr Colin Miskelly is researching the life and work of the Canterbury naturalist Edgar Stead (1881-1949). This includes re-taking Stead’s photos from the same photo-point, taking other images to illustrate his diaries, and describing how the ecology and wildlife of each of 10 islands hasRead more
