Hei-tiki
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The hei-tiki ( can mean "to wear around the neck".)
Retailers sell tourist versions of hei-tiki throughout New Zealand—these can be made from jade, other types of stone, plastic, or other materials.
Origins and materials
One theory of the origin of the hei-tiki suggests a connection with Tiki, the first man in Māori legend. According to
Robley, author of A History of the Maori Tiki, suggested a similarity of some tiki to images of Buddha, which were often fashioned in green jade. He believed they may have been a forgotten memory of these, in debased form.
The most valuable hei-tiki are carved from pounamu which is either
for its beauty, toughness and great hardness; it is used not only for ornaments such as hei-tiki and ear pendants, but also for carving tools, adzes and weapons. Named varieties include translucent green kahurangi, whitish inanga, semi-transparent kawakawa, and tangiwai or bowenite.A 2014 thesis by Dougal Austin supervised by
Examples of hei-tiki are found in museum collections around the world. The
Types
Traditionally there were several types of hei-tiki which varied widely in form. Modern-day hei-tiki, however, may be divided into two types. The first type is rather delicate with a head/body ratio of approximately 30/70 and small details such as ears, elbows and knees. The head is on a tilt, with one hand placed on the thigh, and the other on the chest. The eyes are relatively small. The second type is generally heavier than the first. It has a 40/60 head/body ratio, both hands are on the thighs, and the eyes are proportionately larger.
Manufacture
From the size and style of traditional examples of hei-tiki, it is likely that the stone was first cut in the form of a small adze. The tilted head of the ptīau variety of hei-tiki derives from the properties of the stone - its hardness and great value make it important to minimize the amount of the stone that has to be removed. Creating a hei-tiki with traditional methods is a long, arduous process during which the stone is smoothed by abrasive rubbing; finally, using sticks and water, it is slowly shaped and the holes bored out. After laborious and lengthy polishing, the completed pendant is suspended by a plaited cord and secured by a loop and toggle.
Current popularity
Among the other taonga (treasured possessions) used as items of personal adornment are bone carvings in the form of earrings or necklaces. For many Māori the wearing of such items relates to Māori cultural identity. They are also popular with young New Zealanders of all backgrounds for whom the pendants relate to a more generalized sense of New Zealand identity. Several artistic
The captain of HMS New Zealand, a battlecruiser funded in 1911 by the government of New Zealand for the defence of the British Empire and which took an active part in three battles of the First World War, wore into battle a hei-tiki (as well as a piupiu, Māori warrior's skirt). The crew attributed to this the New Zealand being a "lucky ship" which sustained no casualties during the entire war.
In popular culture
The mockumentary film Hei Tiki was released in 1935, with a New York Times review describing the plot as being about a "chieftain's daughter who is declared tabu and destined to be the bride of the war god", attributing the title to mean "love charm" (a Hei-tiki pendant interpretation).[5]
The crime writer Ngaio Marsh gives prominence to an amuletic hei-tiki (which she calls simply a tiki) in her 1937 novel Vintage Murder. She emphasises its aspect as a promoter of fertility.
See also
References
- ^ "hei-tiki". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2021-08-20.
- ^ Austin, Dougal Rex (2014). "Hei tiki: He whakamārama hōu". vuw.ac.nz. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
- ^ MNZ-TPT Collection
- ^ British Museum Collection
- ^ "At the Globe". The New York Times. 2 February 1935. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
- T. R. Hiroa (Sir Peter Buck), The Coming of the Maori. Second Edition. First Published 1949. Wellington: Whitcombe and Tombs 1974.
External links
- maori.info Further information about hei-tiki, with pictures
- Hei-tiki in the collection of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
- Auckland War Memorial Museum hei-tiki collections
- Curator Tharron Bloomfield discusses some of the hei-tiki in Auckland War Memorial Museum's collection
- 19th Century greenstone hei-tiki from museum collections
- Modern New Zealand Hei-tiki carving examples