Tutauru
Welcome to this week’s preview of Tamaki Paenga Hira, an informative program recently featured on Maori Television exploring 13 taonga Maori from the Auckland War Memorial Museum collections.
Episode 13: Tutauru
The show, screened on Maori Television onWednesday 11th January 2012 explored the rich tradition relating to the toki poutangata (adze) ‘Tutauru’.
Tradition states that blade of Tutauru was shaped from a block of pounamu (greenstone) that had been collected in Aotearoa by the Polynesian explorer Ngahue and taken back to the ancestral homeland of Hawaiki. Two adzes were made – Tutauru and Hauhau-te-rangi – and both were used in the construction of the migration waka Te Arawa.
Toki poutangata Tutauru
By the late 18th century the adze had been acquired from its guardian, Purahokura, and transported to England, where it was gifted to a Miss Jennings by her uncle in July 1794. It was eventually purchased by William Oldman and added to his extensive collection before the entire collection was purchased by the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs. The adze was deposited in the Auckland Museum in 1950 as part of the Oldman Collection.
Please note that Tutauru is currently on long term loan to Rotorua Museum.
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