[Plates 41-60]
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PLATE XLI.
TE OHU.
AN OLD TOHUNGA OR HEATHEN PRIEST.
TE Ohu is one of the most important of the tohungas, or heathen priests, in the vicinity of Kawhia: he resides at the small settlement Te Pahe, on the Waiharikeke river, which flows into Kawhia Harbour.
I obtained the portrait of this remarkable individual at Ahuahu, during a great korero, or meeting of chiefs for the purposes of consulting and making speeches on an important subject. He spoke with great eloquence; running about, shaking his grisly and gorgon locks, and stamping furiously on the ground, whilst his powerful voice rent the air like hollow thunder.
In the background of the portrait is a wahi tapu, or receptacle for the property of a deceased chief, which contains a basket of food, and a calabash of water, for the spirit to refresh itself, when revisiting its former abodes. To the left is an upright tomb constructed out of a portion of a canoe.
KO TAUWAKI AND KO TEONIONGA.
TAUPO.
The sitting figure, Ko Tauwaki, is a warlike chief belonging to the wild and primitive people of Tukanu, beyond Taupo Lake, and affords an excellent specimen of one of the interior tribes. The boy, Ko Teonionga, is a relation of the great chief Te Heuheu, at Te Rapa, on the shores of Taupo Lake; he wears one of the black mats of rough flax peculiar to the district, and in his hair are the white feathers of a gull. Beyond is seen an ornamented patuka or store-house for food, with a portion of the fence-work of the Pah.
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PLATE XLII.
CANOE HEADS, PADDLES, &c.
1. CARVED image of Rauparaha, in one of his war canoes, at Kapiti, or Entry Island. The figure is cut out of hard wood, and coloured red with Kokowai: the eyes are inlaid with pawa, the pearly portion of the haliotis shell.
2. Richly decorated head of a war canoe belonging to Rauparaha. Some of the war canoes are from sixty to eighty feet in length, and when in use, are gaily ornamented with bunches of kaka and albatross feathers.
3. Carved head of a canoe at Kaiwarawara, likewise coloured with red ochre.
4 and 5. Ornamented paddles, belonging to Te Heuheu, the principal chief of Taupo Lake. These paddles exhibit designs similar to those upon the decorated houses and other works of Maori art still extant.
6. Handle of a canoe paddle, from Taupo Lake.
7. A canoe under sail, Cook's Straits.
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PLATE XLIII.
TE MARO.
A BOY OF WAIKATO.
THE accompanying portrait was painted at Koruakopopo, a small and picturesque village on the banks of the Waikato river. Te Maro is son of an inferior chief belonging to the great Waikato division: he is about sixteen years of age, and wears his hair cropped short according to the prevailing custom; his dress is a variety of the Kakahu, the dried flax leaves being fastened on in rows into the fabric beneath.
TE AMOTUTU.
A YOUNG CHIEF OF NGA-TI-POU TRIBE.
This lad is about the same age with Te Maro, and belongs to Te Whero-whero's people, about fifty miles further up the Waikato than Komakopo. Te Amotutu has been living as mission lad with Mr. Ashwell, at the Church Missionary Station of Pepepe on the Waikato; he is a fine intelligent youth, and at the time of my painting his portrait had been married about six weeks to an equally juvenile and very handsome bride at Kaitote Pah, to whom he had been long betrothed by his parents.
KO TARIU.
A CHIEF OF TAUPO, WITH HIS WIFE.
This is the chief who was anxious to destroy all my sketches, as a punishment for my having represented places and objects that were tapu, and had it not been for the interference of my friend Te Heuheu, who had offered me his protection whilst at Taupo, I should doubtless have lost a portion of my collection. Ko Tariu lost his right eye in an expedition against Wanganui, and was formerly a distinguished warrior. He has the favorite pipe in his mouth, the use of tobacco having extended all over the interior of the island, the natives become inveterate smokers, and tobacco the principal article of barter amongst them.
His wife is an excellent specimen of a primitive Maori woman in her every day costume.
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PLATE XLIV.
TE WHERO-WHERO OR PATUATU [POTATAU].
THE PRINCIPAL CHIEF OF ALL WAIKATO.
Te Whero-whero is the most important man of all the Waikato tribes, and has an almost unlimited influence amongst his people; as a warrior he is equally renowned with Rauparaha of Cook's Straits, and there are few chiefs who possess such tact and discrimination in all matters of policy.
My interview with Te Whero-whero was in his plantation at Whatawhata, where, seated on the ground against a fallen log, he was superintending his people at their work. Whilst painting his portrait, it commenced raining heavily, but owing to a superstitious notion that his person was tapu, Te Whero-whero refused to change his position; at the same time he most politely ordered some of his people to erect a temporary shed over me: this was at once done, by fastening some blankets to upright poles, and enthroned beneath this canopy, I completed my portrait of old Te Whero-whero.
The following is a copy of a letter given to me by Te Whero-whero, as an introduction to the celebrated Te Heuheu, the chief of Taupo:
Whata Whata, Akatopa 4, 1844.
E te Heuheu tena ko koe. E tai kia pai tou atawai ki ti pakeha e haere atu na ki a koe. Na tou ingoa i kawea atu, he kai tuhi tuhi ahua ia, naku hoki na Potatau tenei pakeha. E tai kia atawai atawai koe ki tenei pakeha. Kei he koe ki taku pukapuka, he pakeha tauhou no Ingarangi.
Naku,
Na te hoa,
POTATAU.
Kai a te Heuheu.
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(Translation.)
Whata Whata, Oct. 4th, 1844.
Friend Heuheu,--Health to you! Let your hospitality be very great to this stranger who is going to see you. Your name has carried him away. He is a writer of images; he belongs to me--to Potatau. Be kind to this European. Take heed you do not despise my book. He is a strange foreigner from England.
By me, your friend,
POTATAU.
To Heuheu.
TE WARO AND TE PAKARU.
Te Waro is the principal chief of the Nga-ti-Apakura tribe, a division of the Waikatos, and is remarkable as a man of distinguished ability and prowess in all matters connected with the government of his people. He generally resides at Waipa, but is often at Kawhia and Ahuahu. His dress, as represented in the plate, is a Kaitaka, with a very rich border. Te Pakaru is the head chief of the Nga-ti-Maniapoto tribe, also an important division of the Waikatos; like Te Waro he is a celebrated orator, and the mildness of his manners, combined with the general amiability of his conduct, have long rendered him a universal favorite amongst all who know him. Te Pakaru is sometimes called Apokea, and dwells near the Mission Station of Ahuahu, where he usually attends the service as a Christian convert.
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PLATE XLV.
LAMENTATION OVER A DECEASED CHIEF.
ON the death of a chief, or any individual of rank amongst the New Zealanders, a great lamentation ensues, which is called a tangi. The women cut their arms and lacerate their breasts and faces in a dreadful manner, with the sharp and broken shells of the pipi or the mussel, until they become covered with blood. The dead body is laid out in state beneath the verandah of the dwelling, wrapped in the choicest mats; and the tail feathers of the huia are employed for decorating the hair of the deceased. This tangi frequently lasts several days, after which period the body is enclosed in a mausoleum of carved wood-work, or buried beneath an ornamental tomb, highly adorned with black and red paint and feathers. At the expiration of some months, or perhaps a year, the bones are raised, by the nearest relation of the deceased, and after being well scraped and cleaned are either deposited in an elevated box, or hid in a cavern known only to the Tohunga.
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PLATE XLVI.
ORNAMENTAL CARVINGS IN WOOD.
1. The celebrated image of Rangihaeata carved by himself. This forms the lower portion of the central pillar supporting the roof of Rangihaeata's house on the Island of Mana, called "Kai Tangata," or "Eat Man," of which a representation has been given in a previous plate. This image is about four feet high, and occupies the centre of the inner compartment of the building: it is carved out of very hard wood of a dark color. The eyes are inlaid with pawa or pearl shell (Haliotis.)
2. Stern-post of a large canoe from the river Thames.
3. Papa, a carved box for the reception of the tail feathers of the huia (Neomorpha Gouldii) which are worn in the hair by the chiefs on all occasions of ceremony.
4. Another box for similar purposes, also for holding various small articles of value. The box with its contents is frequently tapu or sacred, so that none but the owner is permitted to touch it. These boxes are richly ornamented, and vary considerably in form and size.
5. Head of a carved wooden spear about twelve feet long, from the Nga-ti-awa tribe. This weapon was mentioned by Captain Cook, but is obsolete at the present time.
6. Raised stand for supporting tapued articles consecrated to the dead. Found amongst the ruins of Waitahanui Pah at Lake Taupo.
7. A sketch in Port Nicholson Harbour.
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PLATE XLVII.
KO NGA WAKA TE KARAKA,
A CHRISTIAN CHIEF OF WAIKATO, WITH HIS ATTENDANT BOY.
THE progress of Christianity amongst the New Zealanders has been very rapid during the last few years, and its effects have wrought a great change in the habits and social condition of the people. One of the most immediate of these results is the abolition of the fierce and bloody struggles that were constantly carried on between hostile tribes--conflicts, marked with all the horrors of cannibalism and every species of savage indignity and revenge. Now, owing to the influence of their newly-adopted religion, these civil wars have almost ceased--former feuds are forgotten,--and the Maori cultivates his plantation in the sunshine of peace. Tribes that hailed the teachers of religion with cannibal feasts, that shook the mangled limbs of mortal clay in the face of the missionary's wife, are now enjoying in tranquility the blessings of the gospel of peace.
The missionaries who have been instrumental in thus paving the way for civilization in New Zealand, belong chiefly to the Church and Wesleyan Societies. The former, under Bishop Selwyn, have upwards of thirty missionaries employed in the Northern Island: Pahia at the Bay of Islands has long been the head quarters of this mission, and it was the spot near which the first missionaries landed, with the venerable Marsden, who may be called the father of the New Zealand Mission. The Wesleyans have about the same number of missionaries employed as the Church of England; their labours being principally directed along the west coast and some portions of the interior. The French Jesuit mission, under Bishop Pompalier, has made Kororarika its head quarters, and its priests who are about a dozen in number, are chiefly engaged in propagating their doctrines amongst the inhabitants of the East Coast, especially about Hawker's Bay.
The individual who is pourtrayed in the plate, is a zealous and devoted adherent to Christianity: he is one of the most important of the Waikato chiefs; his native name is Ko-Nga-Waka, to which is added his baptized name of Karaka (Clark). He has made considerable progress in civilization, and always adopts the European costume; should the traveller have occasion to visit his house, he is provided with a bed, and food is set before him upon a table, with plates and knives and forks, according to the English custom.
By his side is his attendant boy Wakauenuku.
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PLATE XLVIII.
TAUPO PAH, COOK'S STRAITS.
A WAHI TAPU IN THE FOREGROUND.
THIS view is taken from the hill immediately above Rangihaeata's Pah, a stronghold which that chief has erected since the massacre of Wairau, to which he may retreat in case of attack. The Maori village occupying the shores of the bay is called Taupo Pah, and belongs to Rauparaha, being inhabited by a portion of the Nga-ti-toa tribe. The situation of this Pah is about a mile from Porirua, on the northern shores of Cook's Straits. On the brow of the hill, as represented in the foreground, is a singular erection of sticks, much resembling basket-work, elevated on four upright posts, and having a semi-circular top. Within this cage-like building are placed a variety of different articles; household utensils, skins, calabashes, and dried fish: and a garment suspended beneath flutters in the wind. This is a wahi tapu, or sacred place, of peculiar construction, serving as a receptacle for goods and property that have become subject to the law of tapu for a certain length of time, and are placed here by the Tohunga or priest, who alone has the right of approaching the sacred articles.
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PLATE XLIX.
THE ABORIGINAL INHABITANTS.
TYPICAL PORTRAITS.
ON the annexed plate are given several portraits which display strongly the physical character, and show the facial angle, of the heads of the New Zealanders. In the centre portrait the elaborate markings of the moko, or tattoo, are carefully represented, as also in the profile to the left; the remaining heads are those of females, who only tattoo the lips and chin.
The complexion of the New Zealanders varies greatly in different individuals: sometimes it is no darker than that of an Italian or a Spaniard; at other times it is considerably deeper in shade. Their hair is remarkably black, glossy, and luxuriant; occasionally it inclines to a brown colour, and I have now and then met with children in the very heart of the interior possessing flaxen hair, but this is a circumstance of rare occurrence. The hair of the men is often curly, but no approach to a woolly nature is discernible. The eyes of both sexes are almost invariably of a dark hazel; their eyebrows are regular and well-defined, and their eyelashes strong; but owing to the practice of tangi, combined with the effects of sitting over the smoke, they soon lose the beauty of their eyes and lashes.
The New Zealand heads are good and well-formed, and frequently approach in shape those of the most intellectual nations of Europe: both animal and intellectual faculties are strongly developed, and the facial angle is large. Their teeth are regular, and remain good up to a late period of life. In many individuals the nose is aquiline and well-shaped; in others it is flatter, more resembling those of the people of Luzon or Pelew. The mouth is rather larger than with us, and the lips, especially the upper one, are more fully developed. The New Zealander is naturally long-lived; many of the chiefs have attained a great age: at the present moment there is a chief residing at Coromandel Harbour who distinctly remembers the visit of Capt. Cook to Barrier Island, and several others of the inhabitants recollect events that occurred about the same period.
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PLATE L.
TOMBS.
1. Mausoleum of E Tohi, the mother of Rauparaha, on the Island of Mana, in Cook's Straits.
This richly ornamented tomb stands at a short distance from Rangihaeata's celebrated house, and, like it, is constructed of wood, painted, and decorated with feathers. The border of a splendid Kaitaka mat is seen depending in front of the papatupapaku, or box for the body, within which the body was originally placed in a sitting posture. All the ground within the outer rail is strictly tapu.
2. An upright sepulchral monument, at a small island pah in Tory Channel, not far from its junction with Queen Charlotte's Sound, Middle Island.
3. Another upright monument, differently painted, at Te awa iti, Cloudy Bay, Middle Island. Both this and the preceding are formed out of portions of canoes.
4. A carved Tiki, or image, in an old pah near Roto-aire Lake; beyond the image is a little elevated whata, or box, for holding the bones of a favourite child.
5. A monument to three children, near Te awa iti, Cloudy Bay.
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PLATE LI.
MURIWENUA and KAHAWAI.
1. Muriwenua is the oldest chief of Aotea, a harbour on the west coast, a few miles to the northward of Waingaroa. There is a Wesleyan mission station at Aotea, and this chief, though still a heathen himself, and unwilling to renounce the religion of the Tohunga, is friendly and well-disposed towards the Christians. Muriwenua cannot be less than from eighty to ninety years of age; he has a remarkably tall, spare figure, and his dishevelled hair and grisly beard impart to him a savage appearance. Formerly he was one of the most courageous warriors of his day: now he is regarded as possessing unusual powers of sorcery, and has much influence amongst his tribe. He is represented wearing a beautiful topuni, or war mat, of dog's hair; the colours of which are so assorted into stripes as to resemble a tigers skin. In the distance is part of Aotea Harbour, with the mountain of Perongia beyond.
2. Kahawai or Pugnarehu, principal chief of the Nga ti hinetu tribe. This important individual resides principally amongst his people at Ngahuruhuru, in the Waipa district, not far from the great deserted pah of Raroera: his garment is a rich topuni, above a European blanket, and in his hand is his meri poonamu.
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PLATE LII.
THE CEREMONY of ONGI, or PRESSING NOSES.
THIS scene represents a party of natives arrived at a small pah at Taranaki, who are saluting their friends with the ceremony of ongi, or pressing noses; a mode of greeting which corresponds with our custom of shaking hands; on occasions where friends meet after a long absence, the ongi is performed for a considerable time, especially by the women. In the distance is the snow-capped peak of Mount Egmont.
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PLATE LII1.
MAORI [MOARI] or NATIVE SWING.
A FAVOURITE amusement amongst the natives of the interior is the swing, consisting of a number of flax-cords fastened from the top of a pole, which is usually fixed into the ground on the sloping side of a bank: the natives, when swinging, take hold of the cords, and running down the bank, strike out into the air and swing back again to the bank; occasionally they run round in a circle, as in the gymnastic pole of Europe. This amusement is rarely to be seen on the coasts: the only places where I observed it was in the villages about Taupo.
WAR-DANCE.
Before going to battle, and frequently on festive occasions, the war-dance is performed by the men of the tribe. During these savage ceremonies, the performers dance entirely naked, and as they become excited with their war-songs, they work themselves up to the highest pitch of rage. The time of the dance is beaten with their canoe paddles. The plate represents a party of warriors who have just landed, and are perfonning their war-dance before the great pah of Oinemutu, at the Roturua Lakes.
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PLATE LIV.
TOEA and SLAVE BOY.
TOEA is the daughter of Te Awaitaia or William Naylor, the Christian Chief of Waingaroa, on the West Coast. She is represented in the accompanying portrait wearing a beautiful variety of flax-mat, of the finest sort, which has been dyed of a dark purplish colour by means of a decoction of hinau bark. In her ear is a bunch of albatross feathers, which are worn as an ornament.
The boy who is approaching from between one of the palisaded avenues of the pah is an attendant, the son of an individual of inferior rank; he carries a calabash of water in his hands, and his loins are girded with a small flax garment.
The opening of the avenue displays a peep across the harbour of Waingaroa, with the distant shore, and a canoe sail enlivening the blue water beyond.
Both the individuals represented in the plate belong to the Nga ti mahanga division of the Waikato tribe.
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PLATE LV
IMPLEMENTS and DOMESTIC ECONOMY.
1. Mode of fishing with nets on Lake Taupo: the fish, which are all small, are caught in a seine with very fine meshes, and a pole about twenty feet long, with tufts of grass fastened at the end, is employed to drive the fish into the net.
2. A fishing weir, or eel pah, on the river Mokau.
3. Wooden fish-hook.
4. Fish-hook generally in use, made of wood, with a layer of pawa, or pearl shell (Haliotis), and the hook formed of human bone. A feather of the kivi kivi (Apteryx Australis) is fastened at the extremity. The lines are of flax, and, as these hooks dangle astern of the canoes, the glittering appearance of the pawa attracts the fish.
5. Kupenga, or eel trap, formed of twigs, from Mokau.
6. Ko, a wooden spade, for rooting up ferns, and preparing the ground for plantations.
7. A pestle for beating flax, formed of volcanic trap.
8. Wooden Flute, one of the orifices of which is tattoed to resemble the lips of a woman.
9. Bark Bucket, and Calabashes for holding water: the orifices of these latter are also tattoed in a similar manner.
10. Ornamented flax basket for household purposes.
11. E Kumeti, ancient wooden bowl for kumeras, from the deserted pah of Otawhao, near Waipa, eight feet in circumference.
12 and 13. Flax sandals from Otago, in the Southern Island.
14. Portrait of an aged slave woman, at Pouketouto, in the interior, beyond Mokau.
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TE KAWAW AND HIS NEPHEW, TE HEUHEU,
and HIWIKAU.
TE KAWAW is the principal chief of the Nga ti whatua tribe, residing in the vicinity of Auckland, the capital of New Zealand. Te Kawaw is generally at Orakai, a small settlement about four miles from the capital, where he has large potato plantations. The accompanying portrait of this well-known chief was painted at Orakai, along with that of his nephew, Tamahiki, or Te Rewiti. Te Kawaw is represented sitting upon the ground, in front of a shed, clothed in a kakahu of black and yellow flax leaves, with his meri; and the mako taniwa, or tiger shark's tooth, in his ear. His nephew, who is standing by his side, holds a hani in his hand, and his hair is decorated with the tail feathers of the huia. Beyond is a portion of Orakai Bay.
TE HEUHEU, Mananui, or Tukino, is the principal chief of all Taupo, and one of the most remarkable, as well as influential, of the chiefs of New Zealand. He is a fine old man, with an imposing appearance, and dignified carriage; he stands nearly seven feet high, and is very corpulent. His hair is silvery white, and his people compare it to the snowy head of the sacred Tongariro; there being no object, except this tapu mountain, of equal sanctity to permit of its being mentioned in connection with the head of this chief. At the present time, Te Heuheu has eight wives living; only his favourite one is permitted to eat with him, but not out of the same vessel. Te Heuheu is generous and hospitable: whatever he gives is freely bestowed; and he does not, like many of the chiefs, ask for tobacco or payment in return;--he prides himself upon his rank and dignity, and is glad of an opportunity to display his hospitality to strangers. The greenstone ornaments belonging to the old chief are remarkably fine: his meri poonamu is one of the largest I have seen, and is formed of beautiful semi-pellucid jade. Hiwikau, the younger brother of Te Heuheu, is known also as Nga Papa; he is depicted sitting upon a rock behind his brother, dressed in a kakahu. Beyond is seen a portion of the fence-work of Te Heuheu's court-yard, in his settlement of Te Rapa, with part of Lake Taupo in the distance.
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PLATE LVII.
RANGIHAEATA'S PAH; WITH THE ISLAND of MANA
AND THE
OPPOSITE SHORES OF COOK'S STRAITS.
SOON after the massacre of Wairau, Rangihaeata erected the stronghold opposite Mana, which is represented in the accompanying plate: it is guarded by enormous wooden posts, sunk very deep into the ground, and firmly lashed together by means of flax rope and aka. The approach to it from seaward is guarded by a reef of rocks running a long way out into the Straits. Above the pah is a wahi tapu, the view from which, looking across Taupo Pah, is given in a preceding plate. Beyond is seen the Island of Mana, or Table Island, at the southern side of which is a small pah belonging to Rangihaeata, where stands his celebrated carved house, called kai tangata, or "eat man" (Plate IV). The opposite shores of Cook's Straits are distinctly visible, with the rugged, and, in many places, snow-capped mountains of the Middle Island, marking the direction of Quee n Charlotte's Sound. In the foreground are canoes belonging to Rauparaha, with the flax (Phormium) growing upon the grassy bank adjoining the beach. Mana is distant about five miles from the mainland, and has long been a celebrated resort of the shore whalers who frequent Cook's Straits.
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PLATE LVIII.
WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS OF WAR:
WARRIORS PREPARING FOR A FIGHT.
1. A richly carved adze, with a greenstone head, ornamented with dogs' hair and kaka feathers; from the Middle Island.
2. Tomahawk with a European head, and a handle of carved bone.
3. A Tomahawk belonging to Pomara, the Chatham Island chief; the handle is of bone richly ornamented: a strip of dog's skin is inserted through the handle, for the purpose of fastening it to the wrist in battle.
4. A wooden dagger. From the interior near Tuhua.
5. 6. 7. E Hani. A staff of hard wood carried by the chiefs, and used both in war and whilst speaking. The head of the hani is carved, the sharp point of which, designed to resemble the human tongue thrust out in an attitude of defiance, is urged forward as a mark of insult to the enemy; the eyes are made of small pieces of pawa or pearl shell, inserted on each side, and the staff is still further ornamented with red parrots' feathers and tufts of dogs' hair. In the circle of debate, the chief whilst speaking runs up and down before his hearers, holding in his hand the ornamented hani.
8. Patu, a light wooden weapon, about four feet long, with a semicircular head resembling a bill-hook or chopper; it is generally ornamented with a bunch of kaka feathers, and the handle is frequently carved more or less.
9. Warriors preparing for battle. Before going to a fight, it is customary for the combatants to strip off their garments, and, by distorting their features, rolling their eyes, putting out the tongue, and other marks of defiance, to work themselves up into the highest pitch of phrenzy and passion. This preparation is called poukaua. The elaborate tattoing of the thighs and posteriors is here shown.
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PLATE LIX.
DOMESTIC ECONOMY: WOMEN MAKING MATS, &c.
1. A sketch at Kaitote, on the Waikato, showing a cooking-house, with a couple of old women performing the ceremony of ongi, or pressing noses.
2. An aged woman of Te Mutu, making a basket of the leaves of the tawara (Freycinetia Banksii).
3. A slave woman, preparing potatoes by scraping them with a mussel shell. The potato forms the principal article of food amongst the New Zealanders, and much of their time is employed in its cultivation.
4. Interior of a house at Rangihaeata's pah at Porirua, with women engaged in manufacturing flax garments. The pole in the foreground, with a carved image beneath, supports the ridge-pole of the building.
5. Tangi, or crying of welcome. When friends meet, they cry together for some time: then succeeds the ongi, or pressing noses, as shown in figure 6. Both these sketches are from life, and were made near Taupiri, on the Waikato river.
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PLATE LX.
COLOSSAL TIKI at RAROERA PAH.
NOT far from the magnificent tomb or papatupapakau of the daughter of the Waikato chief Te Wherowhero (Plate X.) stand several colossal Tikis, or obeliscal posts of wood, carved with grotesque representations of the human figure, and painted with kokowai, or red ochre. Of those still remaining in a state of preservation, the one represented in the accompanying plate is perhaps the most remarkable. It is difficult to conceive the precise intention of this elaborate specimen of Maori skill in the art of carving; but it probably has some connexion with their mythological traditions, and may be intended to portray some of their ancestors, who, according to the legendary tales of the people, landed in a canoe from the Eastward, bringing with them the kumera, or sweet potato. The name of their great ancestor was Maui, the same by which the lower figure in the carving is designated by the inhabitants at the present day. The height of this carved symbolical image is upwards of fifteen feet.
The flax (Phormium tenax) grows in abundance amongst these ruins; other smaller tikis appear in the background.
