Carved Houses of Te Arawa.

By W. J. PHILLIPPS and J. M. McEWEN

A Previous Paper on this Subject by W. J. Phillipps has already appeared in Dominion Museum Records in Ethnology, Vol. 1, No. 1, 1946.

INTRODUCTION.

The following notes give a brief account of a number of carved houses erected in the Arawa tribal territory during the past 150 years. The older houses are naturally of greater interest and the purpose of including modern houses may be questioned by some. There are several reasons for this, however, the principal reason being the fact that a number of these comparatively modern buildings incorporate a few carved slabs which originally belonged to much older buildings. Secondly, most of the modern Arawa houses have been carved by craftsmen who were trained by the older schools of carvers, many of them, in fact, being Iineal descendants of some of the most outstanding carvers of the early nineteenth century. Thirdly, if we are to regard Maori carving as a living, and therefore a developing art, we cannot disregard the work of the past fifty years.

Covering such a wide field, this paper does not attempt to give a full description of house mentioned, but it is hoped that the notes and the accompanying illustrations will place on record some points of interest relative to the carving of one of the few tribes which has kept its traditional art in a thriving state in the face of Pakeha culture and economy.

CARVED HOUSES, TE RUAPEKA PA

Very early in the 1840’s George French Angas, the celebrated artist who depicted early Maori life, arrived in Rotorua. In his work The New Zealanders, 1847, pl. 53, he has left us a record of a war dance outside Te Ruapeka pa, and behind the stockades of the pa he figures two large houses. The smaller of these has, in the original painting, carving on the raparapa of the maihi; so we may assume that the larger house was similarly carved, probably to a greater degree.

Fig 1. War Dance, Te Ruapeka Pa, Onehinemutu, after Angas.

From Mr. Kepa Ehau we received an account of the manner in which this pa was submerged beneath the water of Lake Rotorua very soon after Angas had visited the spot. “Five generations ago Te Ara Tukutuku, a woman of rank and a chieftainess from Taupo and related to the people of Ohinemutu, was visiting her kinsfolk at Muruika pa (the sunken pa also called Te Ruapeka). The site of her home is now submerged alongside Te Papakino rock and beacon about five chains from. Mr. Kepa Ehau’s house at Ohinemutu. One day Te Ara Tukutuku was seen washing her maro (in very embarrassing circumstances). Annoyed at the news being broadcast she invoked the aid of Ngatoroirangi’s gods and they caused the submergence of some of the pa now known as Te Ruapeka. Her direct descendants are the late Capt. H. D. Dansey. and Mrs. Ehau.”

Mr. Ruhi Pururu relates that a great taniwha of Taupo, invoked by Te Ara Tukutuku, caused this earthquake and submergence. It happened just before daybreak. Returning home the taniwha decided to bathe in a warm pool at Horohoro, but dawn came too quickly, and he was turned into a log, which may still be seen in the pool. This log is called Koro-whakatupua. Some years ago it was decided that this pool would be a better swimming pool if the log was removed. This was done and the pool then dried up. The log was put back and the water returned again. An account of this submergence, written by the late Captain Mair, differs somewhat in detail.

TUNOHOPU, OHINEMUTU.

Tunohopu stands at Ohinemutu facing the lake. It was built by the direct descendants of that ancestor who in turn was a few generations removed from Whakaue. The carvers of Tunohopu were Rotohiko Haupapa, Kiwi Amohau, Wihau and others. The house was opened in March, 1926, and though a modern house, has some interesting features in carving technique. The raparapa are unusual in that there are four finger projections each ending in the upper portion of a human face with paua inset eyes. The upper amo figures on both sides have their bodies overlaid with elongate manaia, heads on the lower bodies of the figures and tails extending upwards into the mouths of the figures to end in three fingers.

A departure from the usual custom is also to be seen on the waewae of the door and window where the tongues of the manaia figures continue￼

Fig. 2 Tunohopu, Ohinemutu.

to become takarangi spirals. The rafters of this house are placed on edge to rest on the poupou at their lower ends, the heke tipi being above the poupou. Inside the building there are ten poupou on each side, and nine on the back wall. The tahu appears to consist of a series of planks, the side series being obliquely set.

Fig. 3 Te Roro-o-te-rangi, Ohinemutu.

TE RORO-O-TE-RANGI, OHINEMUTU

This house stands next door to the residence of the late Mr. H. Tai Mitchell. It is a family house built about twenty years ago. The family chiefly interested in the house are the direct descendants of Te Roro-o-te-rangi and are closely related to the people of Owhata where stand the houses Hinemoa and Tutanekai. Henare Kaatoro te Kowhai, who now lives in this house, told me that it was built by Kara te Kowhai, the original owner, Princess Te Puea was reputed to have stayed here on occasions. Te Roro-o-te-rangi was described to us as the “The Rauparaha” of old. He was a raider who gave no mercy to his enemies. The carvers of the house were Rotohiko Haupapa, Kereti and Wihau. This house has the rafters set on edge fitting downwards between the heke tipi boards to rest on the poupou.

Inside the house at the base of the poutahu is a carved representation of Turi Puku, original owner of the land, who lived four generations ago. Te Roro-o-te-rangi is a small house with a fully carved maihi. There are three finger projections and no terminal manaia. Te Roro-o-te-rangi is represented by a tekoteko with imitation huia feathers in the hair.

TAHARANGI, TAREWA, OHINEMUTU

Taharangi dates from the year 1903. The house is now being repaired for use as a church to be occupied by Latter Day Saints. Mr, A. Ruhi is the owner, but Mr. Davies represents the Latter Day Saints. The amo of this house are carved to portray stout-bodied figures, each with five-fingered hands. As in a large group of Arawa houses, the lower border of the maihi is carved and a single head appears at the apex. The pare is composed of three figures covered with rauponga. Upright hands end in three fingers at the pare edge. S curve spirals are at the pare ends with only one manaia face above. The rafters are rounded below and slightly curved at the ends resting on the poupou. The heke tipi is present.

￼Fig. 4. Taharangi, Tarewa, Ohinemutu.

TIKI, OHINEMUTU

Mrs. Wharetoroa Graham has supplied us with the following notes :-

This house was erected as a whare karakia (church) for the members of the Ringatu Church at Ohinemutu, of which Mrs. Graham is the last surviving member. The marae is called “Te Whakapono a Te Kooti,” meaning the faith of Te Kooti. Te Kooti stayed here at times when journeying to Waikato and other parts. The house was carved by Ngati Tarawhai carvers, including Tene Waitere, and the figures in the building represent Ngati Tarawhai ancestors.

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Fig. 5. Tiki, the Ringatu Church at Ohinemutu.

The carved ridgepole is much older than the other carvings, having been part of the first Ringatu Church, also called Tiki, which the lake near where the house Tunohopo now stands. This ridgepoIe was the only carving in the original Tiki, even the amo and maihi being plain. The rafter paintings were done by Te Wikiriwhi Rangarehua Makai, who, according to Mrs. Graham, was an expert; and she will not allow any other person to attempt to renew the paintings. Mrs. Graham calls the poutokomanawa the “pou tane,” the name no doubt being derived from Tane’s exploit in propping up the sky.

Graham, in J.P.S. 30, p. 256, 1921, quoting Te Miroi, of Ngati Tunohopu, a hapu of Ngati Whakaue refers to Tiki, an ancestor after which one of the Waharoa of Ohinemutu pa, was named. He states: “It is after Tiki that our ancestral house was named, which now stands at Pahou in this village. Te Wharetoroa built it to commemorate that ancestor and it replaced the older house of that name.”

TUMAHAURANGI, KOUTU, OHINEMUTU

This house occupies a commanding position on the rise at Koutu. It was carved by Tamatekapua and Wihau te Raihi, both of whom live close to the house. In general Tumahaurangi is a copy of the old Tamatekapua. There is the same blank space on the maihi and a general resemblance in carving technique. The carving was commenced in 1922 and the house was opened on August 3rd, 1928.

The raparapa of the maihi have four long finger projections with a down-facing ngututa head above and a side-face human figure below. The amo are rather high, each with two double-tongued figures. On the upper part of the maihi, the toroa (or torea) figure is used as in old Ngati Whakaue houses. The amo of the porch are short and are set on a ledge reaching halfway to the floor. The pare has three figures on it and is copiously “eyed” at the ends. The outer poutahu is four-sided and well carved with spirals above and many manaia below.

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Fig. 6. Tumahaurangi.

TE AOMARAMA, OHINEMUTU

This is the English Church Hall of Ohinemutu built in the style of a carved house and standing opposite Tamatekapua. It is of importance in our survey of carved houses as being the first headquarters of the Board of Maori Arts established as a Carving School under the late Harold Hamilton, the hail being rented from the church. Mr. Tuoro Pango, M.B.E., tells us that the outside carvings of this house were done by Anaha te Rahui, and the inside work by the Rev. Piri Munro and Te Wheoro Poni.

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Fig. 7. Te Aomarama, Ohinemutu, First School of Maori Arts and Crafts.

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Fig. 8. Interior of Te Aomarama Craving School at Rotorua

The maihi of Te Aomarama are fully carved with large down-facing manaia, and a lower border with takarangi spirals and manaia heads. The raparapa have large ngututa heads above with four short finger projections and a side-face figure at the ends. The amo are high with two fully carved and double tongued figures standing on a “ruru” head below. The pare are obling and eyed at the ends, and the front poutahu is lightly carved.

Some of the most important house carvings of recent years were carried out in this house, and before the Carving School had moved into more commodious quarters, a number of complete houses had been carved wholly or in part. Some of these were Whakaue at Maketu, Te Poho o Rawiri at Gisborne and Ruatepupuke at Tolaga Bay.

HINEMIHI (2), WHAKAREWAREWA

This is a well carved house of recent times. It was the last work of Tene Waitere, carved by him for his granddaughter, Guide Rangi (Mrs. W. F. Dennan) , of Whakarewarewa. The house was opened in 1928. The late Mr. Dennan was the son of Maggie Papakura, whose huia feather is worn by Guide Rangi in the photograph, while the splendid tiki she wears has descended to her from her great, great grandfather, Te Ngahue.

Tene Waiere was a former pupil and great admirer of Wero and his carving art; so on Hinemihi (2) we have a copy of the pare of Houmaitawhiti, of Otaramarae, Rotoiti.

The house has unusually high amo with two typical figures on each; unfortuhately, the names of the ancestors depicted have been forgotten. The tekoteko holding a taiaha stands on a parata or single head with a receding chin. This parata is a continuation of the tahu as in the first Awahou house, an old-style feature seen here and there among Te Arawa. The maihi are fully carved. Below the ngututa faces downwards and below it again are four finger projections on each side. Complete manaia figures are at the maihi ends. On the carved step we have typical ruru-like ancestors assailed by manaia. At the base of the pou tahu is a lizard said to represent Kataore, the taniwha of the Blue Lake, a pet of Tangaroa.

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Fig. 9. Hinemihi with Guide Rangi.

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Fig. 10. Rauru, Whakarewarewa.

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Fig. 11. Guide Sophia and Mita Taupopoki on porch of Rauru, Whakarewarewa

RAURU, WHAKAREWAREWA

A note on Rauru was received from Mrs. Kanea Piripi (Phillips) of Whakarewarewa. She tells us that a few years after its erection it was removed from its original position opposite the Geyser Hotel to the Papira marae, Whakarewarewa, and re-erected in front of where the present Wahaio now stands. This is the house that, later, was sold to a German Museum for £1,500. (See Legends of the Maori by Cowan and Pomare, vol. 1, pp. 259 et seq for the remarkable story of this house.)

WAHIAO (1), WHAKAREWAREWA

The following notes were supplied by Mrs. Kanea Piripi, Whakarewarewa: This house was erected on the site of the present Wahiao, a small knoll having been levelled to make the site. Later, the house was presented to the Ngati Uenuku-kopako hapu, the hapu of Mita Taupopoki’s wire, Herena. There were no carvings inside this house which now is known as Uenuku-kopako, and stands on the main road between Rotorua and Te Ngae. The identity of this house was confirmed by Te Awekotuku Kirikaramu, of Ngati Uenuku-kopako.

WAHIAO (2)

This house replaced Wahiao (1) and was fully carved, some of the carving being done by Iharaira Piripi Hikairo, husband of Kanea Piripi who supplies us with the following whakapapa:

Tuhourangi = Rongomaipapa

Whakaue

Kereru

Wahiwehi

Te Whatu

Te Ngarototu

Whekiki

Hikairo

Makari

Pinenga

Iharaira Piripi Hikairo

The maihi, amo maihi, and poutahu of this house are now on “Tawakeheimoa” at Awahou. Recently, “Waihiao II” was pulled down and replaced by “Wahiao” III. The inside carvings from “Wahiao” II were used in this house and several new poupou were added because of the greater length of the house. The amo, maihi, and poutahu are all new carvings.

HURUNG-A-TE-RANGJ, NGAPUNA NORTH

This is a well-kept house standing not far from the main road about a mile from Rotorua. It is a modern house dating from March, 1937, and was opened by the late Mr. Michael Savage assisted by and Puhi-o-te-Arawa Mitchell. All the carving was the work of Wihau, and the kowhaiwhai was by Wi Tariana Hona, of the Ngati Tu hapu of Tuhourangi. Hurunga-te-rangi resembles the original Tamatekapua in having carvings on the back wall of the porch.

The maihi are fully carved with down-facing manaia, and the raparapa have five short finger projections with the usual ngututa above and manaia below. The amo figures are double with an enlarged head below, and resemble those of the house Ohomairangi, while the tekoteko is in a similar attitude of defiance. The poupou of the porch have a huia painted above and no carving beIow. On the pare are small finger-like projections at the ends, each eyed with paua. The poutahu has a small carved figure attached below. Hurunga-te-rangi was the grandson of the great Arawa chief Tutanekai.

KEAROA

This is one of the older Te Arawa houses, having been opened at Horohoro in the year 1888, when Awatope was the leading chief of Ngati Tuara. It is probable that the carving occupied only a short period, for some seven carvers participated in the work. The waewae were carved by Tene Waitere, the pare by Te Hake and Te Ruato, the amo (or ama) and the tekoteko by Hohepa, the first maihi by Tu, and the second maihi by Te Wheoro and Naera; while the painting of the rafters, called nga tuhituhi by Te Arawa, was the work of Henare Taiamai. About the year 1921, Kearoa was dismantled and taken to Tarewa (Ohinemutu) and re-erected there alongside Taharangi. This was the result of a tribal migration made for economic reasons. When the Native and development scheme under Sir Apirana Ngata came into force the people removed back to their ancestral land, taking the carved house with them. The house is now owned by the Ngati Tuara and Ngati Kea sub-tribes.

At the base of the pou tokomanawa inside Kearoa is a figure of Te Rama-apakura, who was a chief of the Mataatua Tribe. He was a great warrior who was fond of showing off his skill; one day at Makititi he killed a woman of Tuhourangi. He then returned to his pa at Umuhika (Te Teko); but the Tuhourangi people demanded vengeance and organized a war party to march against Umuhika. Naturally, Rama challenged his enemies as they approached and apparently endeavoured to ward off the attack, for which he was unprepared, by a show of skill with his weapons. In the meantime, two children, nephews of Rama, were hiding inside the great house of the pa. However, conditions appeared hopeless, and Rama decided to flee to safety; but the cries of the helpless children brought him back to continue the fighting, and so he perished.

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Fig. 12. Kearoa, Ohinemutu, opened 1921. Originally at Horohoro.

Te Rama had a sister who married and had a son named Pururu. Pururu achieved distinction as the only Arawa joining up with his famous relative, Te Rauparaha, when he visited Rotorua early in last century. Te Rauparaha arranged for Pururu to marry a Ngati Raukawa chieftainess. Their two children were Raharuhi and Ruiha. Eventually, Pururu died in warfare at Kaiapoi. Raharuhi lived at Otaki and there met a woman of the Ngati Tuara Sub-tribe of Te Arawa, named Rina.

These two returned to Arawa territory, and their child was Kirikaiahi, a woman, whose son was Mr. Ruhi Pururu. Awatope, Kipihana and Kirikaiahi (f.) were leaders of the Ngati Tuara Sub-tribe when Keoroa was built. The above information on Kearoa has been supplied by Mr. Ruhi Pururu, Horohoro.

HINEMOA, OWHATA, LAKE ROTORUA

This is at a little native settlement on Lake Rotorua famous in the history of Te Arawa as the spot whence Hinemoa swam to greet her lover on Mokoia Island. Situated near the carved house is the great rock called Iriiri-kapua, on which Hinemoa was accustomed to sit listening for the flute player Tutanekai (or Tiki, his assistant). According to Haki Karawana, Hinemoa was carved by Te Ngaru and was opened in the year 1905. Hinemoa, the woman, is represented by a carved head attached to the tahu end. Only the lower maihi border is carved. On the raparapa are three finger projections with a ngututa head and terminal manaia. Two figures are on the amo, the folded legs of the lower figures being typical.

Hinemoa has the rafters placed on edge and fitting into vertical slots in the poupou. There is a false amo behind the amo proper. This supports a false maihi which runs downwards beneath the eaves so that this amo is grooved as follows:

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Inside there are eight poupou on the side walls and seven on the back wall. There are six cross kaho on the heke. This number must be even to be fortunate, and in just the same manner the poupou of the side walls

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Fig. 13. Hinemoa, Owhata, Lake Rotorua

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Fig. 14. Tutanekai and Hinemoa, Owhata

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Fig. 15. Pare, Tutanekai.

must be an even number and those on the back wall an odd number. In Hinemoa a central kaho painted with rafter pattern crosses each panel space. This space is filled with imitation tukutuku.

Of interest is the flagpole alongside Hinemoa. The koruru on it is said to be from an old meeting house on Mokoia. Some said the old house on Mokoia was named Te Uwira; but others doubted this. The flag pole is named Ariari-te-rangi.

TUTANEKAI, OWHATA

This house was built partly of the old timbers of Tama te Kapua (the first) of Ohinemutu. The carvings are also those of Tama, except for the pare which was the work of Mr. Taanu Tai, and also the koruru which was at one time attached to Hinemoa. The tahu is of thick boards thus

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with no slope at the sides, while the rafters are stoutly made, being constructed in this manner (section ) , as below. These rafters are

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curved below fitting flat on to the poupou which are heavy planks 11½ ins. x 1¼ ins. Inside the building there are twelve poupou on each side with seven on the back wall. There is a central painted kaho across the panel space with tukutuku above and diagonal match lining below. There is no false amo but the maihi rests below on the outer poupou (the only carved poupou in the house), and these are cut out to hold the outer rafter on each side and support the maihi below thus:￼

OHOMAIRANGI, PIKIRANGI

This is a well-carved house standing at Pikirangi or Rotokawa on the shore of Lake Rotorua, six miles from the town of Rotorua. The carving and erection of the house was commenced by Kamu Wikiriwhi. He died and Ransfield Johnson completed the work, carving the poutahu poutokomanawa. Ohomairangi was opened on 26th March, 1940. The local hapu is Ngati Uenukukopako.

The maihi are fully carved with manaia and on the raparapa are four finger projections ending in a manaia below. The tekoteko depicts an ancestor in vigorous attitude, one hand upraised holding a patu. He stands on an enlarged head which covers the maihi apex. On each amo are two-compIete human figures each with double tongues; while below is a single human head of similar design.

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Fig. 16. Mr. H. Tai Mitchell in doorway of Ohomairangi, Pikirangi, Rotorua

On the poutahu are five blocked-out and unfinished figures. The whakawae of the door are heavier than usual and have a number of fairly large manaia on the flattened surface. Above the doorway is an oblong pare with three figures, the arms of the figures being upraised and ending in relatively large manaia heads. The sides and upper border of the window have a wide border of carving. There is no carving on the step.

TE RANGIUNUORA

Kepa Ehau states that this house was the second carved house at Okataina. It was carved by Te Amo-a-tai, of Ngati Tarawhai, one of the teachers of the famous Arawa carver Wero. Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi supplied a fragment of a song composed by Te Tuahu of Tuhourangi about the man, Te Amo:—

E Amo i te muri
Whakarongo mai ra
Tena ko te hanga
Ka tere i te wai.

The song refers to a canoe that was being carved by Te Amo. Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi also supplied the whakapapa of Te Rangiunuora, after whom the house was named:—

Pikiao

Tamakari

Pikiao II

Te Rangiunuora

RANGIWHAKAEKEAU, TE NGAE

This house is situated at the Waiohewa or Mataikotare marae, Te Ngae, nine miles from Rotorua. The house was carved by Rangiteaorere, who died within the past twenty years. Rangiteaorere fought under Major Gilbert Mair in the Maori wars, and had been named after a famous ancestor. Rangiwhakaekeau was the third son of Rangitihi and a half-brother of Tuhourangi. He was an important ancestor who left his home and journeyed to Urewera, where he contracted a liaison with Uenuku-rauiri, a sister of Tuhoe and a puhi or virgin of high rank. Rangiwhakaeau returned home, telling Uenuku-rauiri that if she had a child who was a girl she was to call her Rangitaiki (a river in the Bay of Plenty) and if a boy, Rangiteaorere (floating clouds). A boy was born who when he reached manhood was told by his mother to go to his father. He did so and entered Rangiwhakaekeau’s house through the wall. Rangiwhakaekeau was absent at Mokoia, but on returning home knew that the intruder must be his son. A similar story can be repeated many times in Maori history. This tale was told to us by Rev. Paora Temuera, Otaki.

Another story linking up with this was told us by Mr. Kepa Ehau, and later verified by Mr. Tuoro Akapita, M.B.E., of Ohinemutu, and is as follows:- Over on Mokoia Island the chief Uenuku-kopako and our people (N’Whakaue) lived with a clan partly Te Arawa and partly Tainui, headed by a chief named Kawa-arero. Uenuku-kopako had a pet dog named Potaka-tawhiti after the famous dog of that name (see Sir George Grey, Polynesian Mythology, 1855, p. 123).

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Fig. 17. Rangi te Aorere in front of his House, Rangiwhakaeau.

Whilst visiting a kinsman in the hinterland Uenuku left the dog behihd on Mokoia, and in his absence Kawa-arero killed and consumed it. On his return he made enquiries and found that Kawa-arero had perpetrated the theft.

He taxed Kawa with the deed, who first of all denied it; but as the dog kept whining in the latter’s stomach he admitted the deed. Hence arose the bitter quarrel between the two factions of Kawa-arero and Uenuku-kopako. Kawa-arero prevailed until the arrival of Uenuku’s cousin, Rangiteaorere, from the Mata-tua District, when they were defeated.

The carving on this house is quite distinctive and unusual. The maihi are quite conventional with a carved border below, the raparapa consisting of a ngututa above and three finger projections below. On the amo are two figures, the upper of which has inturned knees and feet ending in manaia heads. The figures have shoulder spirals with elliptic centres, interlocking but not continuing into the extensive spiral volutes we are accustomed to see. The lower amo figures are unusual in having one three-fingered hand on the body and the other radiating upwards in three long fingers to below the lower lip. These lower figures are manaia with the folded legs as seen on old Ngati Whakaue carvings. The pare near the door is composed chiefly of three figures with heads only and large arms branching from below them, and upraised to end in three-fingered hands. The pare over the window has a central figure flanked by inturned manaia of the peculiar type used on this whare. Attached to a horn- shaped arm and spreadeagled below the beak, is a hand of three radiating fingers. This use of single carved heads with arms but no bodies, is not an isolated feature in carving, but apparently is quite old among Arawa work; for the late Mr. Edgar Waite secured from the debris of the Tarawera Eruption at Wairoa an old pataka threshold, now in Canterbury Museum, showing three single heads with arms prominent and other body features lacking.

The koruru is double, the upper figure being apparently old with prominent pakati which appear to be in part of the ladder type, in part four-sided. The eyes are protruding knobs; but they have had paua inlaid at the top. The tongue is single rooted but divides into two, each half swinging a different way. Below is a small rounded head with out-thrust tongue and a semblance of tattoo on the face. Inside the house, at the base of the routokomanawa, is Tihake, a descendant of Rangiwhakaekeau.

UENUKU-KOPAKO. TE NGAE

This house stands on the Te Ruamata marae at Te Ngae and is owned by the Uenuku-kopako hapu of Ngati Pikiao. The following notes are from Te Awekotuku Kirikaramu, who lives in the house. This house was originally erected at Whakarewarewa and was formerly known as

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Fig. 18. Uenuku-kopako.

Wahiao. (Mrs. Phillips, of Whakarewarewa, later confirmed this). According to Te Awekotuku Kirikaramu, the carver was probably Tene Waitere.

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Te Kirikaramu was the man who took a party of people from Rotorua to Auckland to help build the town when it was first settled by Europeans. According to Te Kapo Keehi of Tarawa, Tuhuruhuru and Rangiteaorere help to carve Uenuku-kopako; but apparently Tene Waitere did part of the work also. Apparently, the house was enlarged and some new carving added when it was removed from Whakarewarewa and re-erected at Te Ngae; for the maihi have had a section added above. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the house is seen in the large manaia head on the maihi on each side of the koruru and the ngututa head on the raparapa closely resembling the type used on the Christchurch Exhibition house, 1906.

There are four finger projections and a manaia at the end of the raparapa. On the amo, which have been added to below, are two figures, the upper of which has a koruru-style head and folded legs. Door and window carvings are absent. Uenuku-kopako is 41 feet long by 24 feet wide and in its present situation dates from 1925. The kowhaiwhai is the work of Te Ngaru.

The rafters are set on edge and fit below into vertical slots in the poupou. Tukutuku is present in the upper panels inside the building. Rafter pattern is present on the kaho and on the heke tipi. The ridge pole appears to consist of three planks, thus:

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At this house we met Mr. Takata Te Umu of the Ngati Rangiteaorere hapu. Takata is blind but is something of an authority on house construction. He does not use the East Coast term heke tipi for the top plate above the wall panels, or sometimes placed higher above the poupou. He calls this top plate paetara, and gives the term heke tipi for an lower kaho of the roof. In Uenuku-kopako as pointed out to me the false ornamental oblique border at the ends beneath the heke —evidently the maihi is the outer heke of the porch. Takata calls the side wall pakitara and the back wall tungaroa while the term tukutuku is reserved for the pou tahu in the centre of the back wall. The ornamental panel is called tui and the panel space is turapa. Sometimes a vertical stick runs down the tui. This is called tokai.

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Fig. 19. Mr. Takata Te Umu at Uenuku-kopako.

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Fig. 20. Te Ngakau, Tarukenga.

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Fig. 21. Te Ngakau.

TE NGAKAU, TARUKENGA

Te Ngakau is situated at Tarukenga near the railway line some nine miles from Rotorua. Here lived a settlement of Ngati Tura people who are a sub-tribe of mixed Ngati Raukawa and Te Arawa descent. On our last visit early in 1947, this settlement appeared to be abandoned, temporarily at least. The original house of this name was erected a mile from the present site and opened in 1894. Some carvings for the present house were done by Wihau Te Raihi and the house was re-opened in 1940.

The maihi are fully carved with manaia figures and small takarangi spirals along the lower edge. The raparapa are relatively short with a ngatuta head above, four finger projections and terminal manaia. The tekoteko is a little unusual among Te Arawa houses in having the figure carved in a gesture of defiance with an upraised patu above the head. The amo figures are typical save that tongues are wider than are usually seen in Te Arawa territory. Feet end in enlarged heads, apparently a characteristic feature for this is seen also on the pare above the door. These pare figures number three. All have their hands upraised to end in manaia heads. On the bodies of the figures are carved human heads. There are nine eyed projections on one end of the pare and ten on the other. A large takarangi spiral is on each side of the central figure. The pare is reminiscent of some of the types to be seen on the west coast of the North Island.

The heke are similar to those on Tutanekai. Below they are slightly curved and enlarged thus

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These heke rest on the poupou which are heavy slabs, three inches thick, flattened and plain. Inside there are ten poupou on each side and seven at the end. Imitation tukutuku is present in the upper panel spaces with a painted kaho below.

A carved figure is situated at the base of the poutokomanawa. The porch poupou as well as those inside the building stand on a wall board plank, three inches thick, and resting below on a concrete base.

Fig. 22. Detail of Paepae of Whakaue, Awahou.

WHAKAUE, AWAHOU

This is the carved house in Canterbury Museum described in a newspaper (1908) at the time of its arrival in the Museum as Te Kooti’s house.

“Said to have carving of a kind superior to anything else in New Zealand and to have been old when Te Kooti got it.” Te Kooti visited Rotorua and established a branch of the Ringatu Church at Ohinemutu, as elsewhere described; and it is quite certain that he did not neglect the important settlement of Awahou. We have later been informed of a church of Te Kooti erected at this locality. Te Kapo Keehi, a learned Maori of Tarewa, tells us that Whakaue is the correct name for this house and that Maihi te Rangikaheke was one of the carvers. Later, this was confirmed by Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi of Waiatuhi, Mourea, who says that the house was built in 1887. There are now no adherents of the Ringatu faith at Awahou. Whakaue was acquired by the Canterbury Museum through the good offices of Mr. T. E. Donne, C.M.G., who told Mr. Edgar Waite about it. There is a good figure of Whakaue in Mr. Donne’s book, “The Maori, Past and Present,” 1927, p 160.

TE ARAWA, TE AWAHOU

The following notes are from Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi of Waiatuhi, Mourea :

Te Arawa was a canoe from Lake Okataina, which was dragged down to Lake Rotoiti when it was used by the Mourea people. Later, it was given to Ngati Rangiwewehi of Te Awahou, and was cut up to provide some of the timber for the carvings of this building. The house was named Te Arawa after the canoe and was built before Tiakiawa’s birth in 1870. The carving of the house was done by Wero, the most famous Arawa carver of the nineteenth century.

When Kahumatamomoe was built at Mourea the whakawae from Te Arawa were used. They are much decayed in places, but Tiakiawa says he could not find a carver capable of copying them, so he left them in memory of the old carvers.

Tiakiawa also has part of the paepae and he has presented to the Dominion Museum the remains of one maihi from Te Arawa. The ngututa on the raparapa has a bold, large head and a small mouth very like those on the raparapa of the house Houmaitawhiti at Otaramarae. Some of the manaia on the maihi have taratara-o-kai surface carving. Kena Ehau tells us that he saw the foundations of Te Arawa in his youth. It stood where the church is now. The house Whakaue stood nearby.

HINEKURA, WAIITI

This is a modern house dating from 1928. The maihi, amo, and koruru are somewhat unfinished or ill-shaped; but the whakawae and pare of the door are well carved and probably are from an older house. On the pare are the usual three figures with their accompanying manaia and takarangi spirals. The pare is eyed above. The kowhaiwhai is well finished, and the bulbs of the koru are larger than is usual.

The whakapapa of Hinekura as given by Tiakiawa Tahauriorangi, 27/1/46, is as follows :—

Pikiao

Tamakere

Pikiao II

Te Takinga       Hinekura    Te Rangiunuora

RANGITHII, TAHEKE, NEAR OKERE FALLS

Early in January, 1944, the late Mr. H. Tai Mitchell took one of us to Lake Rotoiti to meet Wirihana Tamati, now deceased, an elder of Ngati Te Takinga sub-tribe of Te Arawa. Speaking in Maori, Wirihana stated as follows: “I am 73 years of age, and have lived in this locality practically all my life. The original Rangitihi meeting-house was built at Taheke settlement near Okere Falls, about three miles by road from here. It was built for the paramount chief and ariki, Te Waata Taranui, an older brother of the renowned warrior, Te Pokiha, who, I may say, was presented with the Queen’s Sword of Honour for loyal services rendered during the Maori Wars, 1864-68; and whilst with the British Forces he held the military rank of Major.

Rangitihi was erected about the year 1860. I have slept in this house on many occasions. It was a fully carved house, the work of the famous Arawa expert and seer, Wero, of the Ngati Tarawhai sub-tribe. It was considered to be the finest whare runanga in Arawa territory. After the death of Te Waata Taranui the house fell into disrepair and was dismantled, and the carvings were carefully stacked nearby. Later, these carvings caught the interest of a Mr. Charles Nelson, Proprietor of the Geyser Hotel at Whakarewarewa, but he failed in his efforts to secure them, and eventually the carvings were deposited in Auckland Museum.”

Thorpe Talbot, in The New Guide to the Lakes and Hot Springs, 1882 p. 17, describes the house at Paihekie (Taheke) as a famous carved temple which ranks second to that of Ohinemutu. The carved portion of the ridge pole, showing two beautiful figures with naturalistic heads, was sold by Eric Craig, dealer, Auckland, sometime early in the present century.

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Fig. 23. Rangitihi, Taheke, carved pane above the porch.

These figures are remarkable for the excellence of the tattoo on their enlarged heads. The bodies are profusely covered with secondary adornment. Around the neck of one figure is a band of taratara-a-kai, while the neck of the other is plain. The ridge-pole of this house is said to have been 70 feet long. The figures were cut off and sold separately for £20 each.

Kerry Nicholls, in The King Country, 1884, p. 62, has given us a sketch of a native village at Lake Rotoiti, presumably by himself, as were most of the sketches in this work. Here we have a large whare whakairo with marae in front and on the right a pataka with carved amo. It is almost certain that Rangitihi is the house figured in his sketch.

The Arawa ancestor Rangitihi, who lived thirteen generations ago, was the coloniser and founder of the Arawa domains from Maketu on the Bay of Plenty to Tongariro in the south. His eight children, se males and one female, are famous among many scattered hapu of his descendants, and have carved or plain houses named after them. His daughter, Tauruao, married Tanemoetara, of Ngati Kahungunu, and numerous people from Gisborne to East Cape also claim descent Rangitihi. This marriage came about because of a pet parrot called Korotangi which was the property of Tanemoetara, a celebrated East Coast chief. It seems that Rangitihi or his agent stole the bird and kept it. A curt demand for its return met with instant refusal, but honours were satisfied when Tauruao became the wife of Tanemoetara.

Other stories have been told of Rangitihi. One of the best-known is the tale of how in battle Rangitihi chanced to receive a blow which badly opened his skull. Retiring into a forest glade, his son, Apumoana, deftly wove a bandage of thin vines and skilfully applying it, managed to close the wound. Rangitihi then returned to the fray. He fought with such fury and might that his prowess and deeds won the day and he emerged victorious. Hence, Arawa people have immortalized the incident in the saying: Rangitihi-whakahirahira te upoko i takaia ki te akatea (Rangitihi, the illustrious, whose head was bound with vine strands).

In Legends of the Maori, by Sir Maui Pomare and James Cowan, Vol. I, p. 223, 1930, is given the story of how the beautiful carvings of Rangitihi came to be handed over to Auckland Museum. Te Pokiha Taranui, high chief of Ngati Pikiao, was dying. He was then living at his village at Taheke, where for many years had stood the carved house Rangitihi, and was greatly concerned in case there would be no money to provide for the hundreds of visitors who would arrive for his tangi. The house had then been dismantled and various portions incorporated in other Bay of Plenty houses, but the panels and poupou still were in his possession. So Te Pokiha sent for the pakeha who had offered to buy the house to be placed in the Museum. And so it was arranged: Te Pokiha was content. He even rose from his sick-bed in 1901 to welcome the mokopuna of the Queen (Duke of Cornwall and York) and was later transported to his favourite abode at Maketu where he died soon afterwards.

This house is rnentioned in Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 34, p. 573. At a meeting of the Auckland Institute on 5th August, 1901, the President announced the purchase of this carved house formerly standing at Taheke on the north side of Lake Rotoiti. The history supplied was as follows:

“In 1867, at which time several notable houses were being erected in the East Coast districts, it was suggested by Captain G. Mair and Mr. H. T. Clarke that one should be built at Taheke, near which a considerable number of Maoris were then living. The proposal was taken up by the Maoris with great enthusiasm. The carving was undertaken by Wero, Anaha te Rahui, and others of Ngatitarawhai (Ngati Tarawhai) Tribe, with several well known carvers of the Ngatipikiao (Ngati Pikiao) Tribe, … The carving occupied between three and four years, and many of the side slabs were carved from the sides of famous old war canoes which had been in the possession of the Maoris for generations, and which had been used against Tohourangi (Tuhourangi) at Te Ariki, and which had been dragged overland into Tarawera Lake. The house was completed about 1871. The principal owner was Te Waata Taranui, elder brother of the late Pokiha Taranui (Major Fox) … The house was nearly 60 feet long by 25 feet wide, and had a height of about 18 feet to the crown of the roof. In 1882 Te Waata died and was buried with the verandah or porch of the house … During the eruption of Tarawera the roof of the house was broken in by the vast quantity of mud lodged upon it. The house was consequently taken down and removed to Maketu with the intention of re-erecting it there, a project which, for want of funds, was never carried out.”

In Auckland Museum various portions of the house Rangitihi are exhibited, the most striking being twenty-one of the interior poupou and a distinctive pare which may be seen over the doorway leading to the Administrative section of the Museum. These carvings are among the finest of the “Wero school” of last century.

TE HORUMOANANUI, TAPAPA

This house was carved and erected about the year 1880 or a little earlier. The carving was the work of Arawa experts. Mr. Taylor Irihei, Ngati Tukorehe Hapu of N’Raukawa, tells us that the carvings were among the finest seen in that part of the country; but the history of the building is now forgotten. Tauehe was a former owner of it. The carved timbers were sawn from the house and stolen about the year 1930. No action was taken by the tribe at the time as the house was deserted and the carvings were more or less tapu. Te Horumoauanui was a reading ancestor of N’Raukawa.

Mr. Taylor Irihei, of the Ngati Tukorehe Hapu of Ngati Raukawa, tells us that Tapapa was so named because of a great sea-bird, probably an albatross, which landed there and could not fly but lay flat on the ground.

TE TIKANGA, NGATIRA

The full name of this house is “Te Tikanga ki te Atua” or “righteousness before the Lord.” The following notes were supplied by Pareti Amopiu (Dan London) and his older brother Te Rori Amopiu, who was born about 1871.

The house was first opened on 10th June, 1887, the chiefs concerned in its erection being Kawia and Amopiu (father of informants). The local hapu is Ngati Ahouru, a hapu of Ngati Raukawa. There being no local carvers, the chiefs sent to Rotoiti for the Ngati Pikiao carver Te Hareti, who was related to them. The carving occupied a whole year. When the house was first erected it was thatched with “wiwi” or rushes. It has been re-erected twice, the latter occasion being in 1927, when concrete foundations and a floor were put in.

This is a rather remarkable-looking house, with the maihi heavily carved with complete conventionalized human figures covering the whole area except the lower border. These figures have their heads carved in a square, horizontal to the plane of the body. The raparapa comes down close to the ground, and has the upper ngututa head well carved and facing outwards with four finger projections below it. Manaia are at the ends. The amo are heavily built and flat topped with large, heavily-carved figures above standing on conventionalized heads below. The tongues of both figures swing outwards. The tekoteko is a rather slim figure of typical shape, standing on a rather heaviIy-carved koruru. The central poutahu of the porch is carved with rauponga ending in a complete figure below.

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Fig. 24. “Te Tikanga,” Ngatira.

The poupou of the porch as well as the step are plain and un-carved. The poutahu is new, having been carved by Pareti Amopiu in 1927.

The dimensions of the house are: width 24 ft., length 44 ft. (outside measurements), and depth of porch 11 ft. The maihi are particularly massive, being 30 ins. wide. Inside the house there is no carving save for a large figure at the base of the poutokomanawa, fully tattooed on face and buttocks, and a high-relief figure on the rear end of the ridge- pole. There is no tukutuku.

Pareti says that the tekoteko was called the “ihi” by the old people, ihi being the sentry who stood on the watch-towers in the oId-time pa to give warning of approaching enemies. He says that the eyes of the ihi figure always should look straight in front and not downwards as in a house in the Bay of Plenty. The tahu is painted with a puhoro design, partly embattled. The other rafters have two patterns, one of which Te Rori Amopiu called Mangopare waharua and the other Mangopare waha kotahi, i.e., double-mouthed and single-mouthed mangopare. When the house was renovated Pareti Amopiu repainted these rafters, following the old designs.

In the porch the tahu has three high-relief figures, two with legs interlocked, and an outer one, which forms the body for the large head on

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Fig. 25. Te Tikanga, amo and maihi.

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Fig. 26. Doorway of Te Tikanga, Ngatira.

the koruru. Te Rori Amopiu gave the following list of ancestors represented in the house:-
Te Atua-herangi                    the tekoteko
Te Kere                    head below tekoteko
Ahouru                    (ancestor of hapu) Outer figure on tahu
Hautere                    left amo (called ama locally)
Patitere                    right amo (facing house)
Ngaopetaua                    figure on poutokomanawa
Tuhoropunga                    figure on rear of tahu inside house
Te Putarera                    The skirting board on the front wall(Called paepae kai awhi locally).

The three figures on the pare are, from left to right, Tikinui, Tiki, and Tikiroa, primeval ancestors.

The following note is from Tiakawa Tahuriorangi, of Mourea, 27/1/46: The old name of Ngatira was Takahua. The carver, Te Hareti, came from Taheke.

TE HARETI.

Ngatai        Ngapu        Te Ruuri       Peeti
                                                                         Ràngipairoa
                                                                                           Ngàtai (2)—still living

TE TAKINGA, MOUREA.

Notes on this house were secured from Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi at Mourea and from Te Mauwai Tumatahi, an elderly lady at Parua. Te Takinga as it stands to-day is the second house of that name to be erected at Mourea. The first house was carved by Te Ngaru I. The paepaewaho and amo from this first house may now be seen in the house Parua nearby. The old door-posts as carved by Te Ngaru I were about five feet high; but these have been added to above by Te Ngaru II, the carver of the present Te Takinga. Tiakiawa Tahuriorngi gives us the following, showing the descent of the ancestor Te Takinga from Pikiao, founder of the powerful Ngati Pikiao sect of Te Arawa.

Pikiao

Tamakari

Pikiao II

Te Takinga

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Fig. 27. “Te Takinga” at Mourea, Lake Rotoiti in background.

Te Takinga is a modern house with relatively high amo and a high pitched roof. Among Arawa houses it is unique in having a tekoteko which may be turned to face in different directions. As an explanation of this we have been told that the tekoteko is a guardian and sentry of the house and must look all ways. The porch is 28 feet wide and 12 feet deep, and is fully carved. Two outside poupou are carved with manaia; while the inner poupou have human figures of the type seen in Rangitihi in Auckland Museum. Toroa or torea manaia are present on these figures. Similar carvings are seen on the inside poupou and many have the toroa present. There is a noticeable use of horizontal rauponga on certain of these poupou, particularly on the legs of the figures. Te Ngaru II sometimes used a three-sided notch in his pakati.

There is a fully carved poutokomanawa with a carved figure at its base. The tahu is remarkable as being fully carved along its entire length with manaia of large size, many convoluted. Even on the pare, manaia are used instead of the customary human figures. The poutahu is fully carved and appears to have been an old flagpole. Near its base are two almost profile heads very close together, each being just a little over half a face with an eye visible.

PARUA-HARANUI, PARUA MARAE, NEAR MOUREA

Parua-haranui was built by the Ngati Parua hapu and opened about the year 1932. The following notes were supplied to us by Te Mauwai Tamatahi, who lives in the adjoining house.

The carvings on Parua are partly from the first house “Te Takinga,” which stood on the site of the present “Te Takinga” at Mourea. These old carvings were done by Te Ngaru Whakapuka, father of Te Ngaru, Junior, also known as Ranapia te Pakura, and include the paepaewaho, maihi, and the upper halves of the amo, which are each in two parts. Te Ngaru, Junior, carved the door-posts and pare, which were the only new carvings put into this house. The figure at the base of the pou tahu is holding a lizard and is named Te Rua a Roro.

Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi, of Ngati Pikiao, who lives next to Kahumatamomoe, kindly supplies the following whakapapa showing the descent of Parua:

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KAHUMATAMOMOE, WAIATUHI, NEAR MOUREA.

This house, which is named after one of the sons of Tamatekapua of the Arawa canoe, is an old Ngati Pikiao house which was re-erected in 1914.

The principal carver was Te Ipu Whakatara of Ngati Pikiao, who carved the amo, maihi, poutahu and tekoteko. The poutokomanawa was carved by Te Ngaru Whakapuka as a flag pole and was used when the house was re-erected as the front poutahu had decayed and the old poutokomanawa was used in its place.

The old poutahu is still in existence and is of interest in that a large lizard is carved upon it. According to Tiakiawa Tahuiorangi, who organsised the re-erection of the house, this lizard represents an atua of Ngati Pikiao named Awhipapa.

The door posts, or whakawae, are particularly fine examples, having been brought from the house Te Arawa which has already been mentioned.

The rafter paintings now in the house were designed by Tahuriorangi.

The following whakapapa is from Tiakiawa Tàhuriorangi:

Tamatekapua

Kahumatamamoe - name of house

Tawakemoetahanga

Uenuku-mai-rarotonga

Rangitihi

Kawatapuarangi

Pikiao

Tamakari

Pikiao II

Te Takinga             Hinekura              Te Rangiunuora

Parua                                                                                          

Tamaahi                                                                                          

Te Iriwhare                                                                                          

Manawa                                                                                          

Tahuriorangi                                                                                          

Te Mata Tahuriorangi                                                                        

Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi, born about 1870.                              

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Fig. 28. Pikiao.

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Fig. 29. Pikiao-interior.

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Fig. 30. Pikiao-doorway.

PIKIAO, TOKERAU, LAKE ROTOITI

This is a carved house on Mr. R. Levin’s property built by Mr. Ruhi Pururu, and carved by Te Ngaru the younger about 1924: Pikiao (2) had four children of whom Te Takinga was the eldest. Hinekura was next, then Moho, while Rangiunuora was the youngest. Mr. R. L. Levin originally paid for the carved house Pikiao as a gift to Mr. and Mrs. Ruhi Pururu. The timber for the house secured from Mt. Horohoro, brought to the lake shore and barged to the mill at Mourea. The information on this house was supplied by Major Vercoe.

As on Tawakemoetahanga at Pukehina, the maihi have carved on them a series of large manaia with folded (or partially interlocking) legs and smaller convoluted manaia have a mouth at each end of the body. These houses resemble each other very closely save that Pikiao is a much smaller house. The tekoteko are almost identical. On the pare of the doorway the same sinuous manaia is seen. The human figures of the pare are quite typical with upraised hands ending in manaia heads and upright fingers.

The interior is beautifully finished with a carved poutokomanawa on which are a number of S curve takarangi spirals. Associated with many human figures of the interior are a pair of torea or elongate manaia with extended jaws. On the main rafters is a design not encountered elsewhere. As will be seen in the accompanying plate each rafter fits into a curved slot in the corresponding poupou. A heketipi is present above the panel spaces and a kaho divides the area into two. Tukutuku is for the most part of modern design.

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Fig. 31. Nga Pumanawa, Lake Rotoiti.

NGA PUMANAWA-E-WARU-O-TE ARAWA

This is a fully carved house situated at Hiukura, Ruato, on the shores of Lake Rotoiti. It is unique in that it was opened by Koroki te Rata, the fifth Maori king, who traces his descent from Tametekapua on his Arawa side.

Tamatekapua

Kahumatamomoe

Tawakamoetahanga

Uenuku mai rarotonga

Rangitihi

Whose children were:

These children were referred to collectively as the Eight Hearts, hence the name of the house “Nga Pumanawa-e-waru-o-te Arawa.”

1. Ratorua
2. Tauruao
3. R’Aohia
4. R’Whakaekeao
5. Rakeiao
6. Kawatapuarangi
7. Apumoana
8. Tuhourangi

Pikiao = Rereiao

Hekemaru

Mahuta

Te Putuangaanga

Tuata

Te Rauangaanga

The first Maori King      Potatau

The third Maori King M.L.C.     Mahuta N.Z. Parliament

Te Rata

Koroki te Rata

The above whakapapa is copied from a folder issued at the official opening ceremony on April 13th, 1941. On the occasion of a visit to Hiukura (1940) with Mr. H. Tai Mitchell, all the carving had just been completed; but by a curious mistake one of the maihi had been carved on the wrong side.

The maihi are carved in typical Arawa style except that the row of bending manaia are not so regularly portrayed as usual, and three or four of the manaia on each side have four greatly enlarged fingers. The raparapa are extremely short – shorter than in any Arawa house visited. There are six finger projections. The ngututa becomes a ngtu-ihe type with an elongate upper lip and the terminal manaia is vertical due to the oblique finish on the raparapa ends.

The amo are obliquely finished above as in many recent houses, including the famous Nuku-te-apiapi at Whakarewarewa. A single figure is portrayed on each amo, the legs being lengthened and the feet folding inwards in the Ngati Whakaue style of Tamatekapua and others. Also, as common in this style of figure, the left hand is on the body and the right upraised beneath the chin.

At the maihi apex is a large koruru with a tekoteko on top.

This house was erected under the direction of Mr. Hori Taia, a chief of the Ngati Rongomai hapu of N’Pikiao. As its name implies, it was built for the descendants of the eight hearts (children) of Rangitihi. The carving was the work of Erimiha Kapua, assisted by Kaka Niao and another. The painting of the scroll work on the rafters was carried out by Kereti, of Ohinemutu. Mrs. Polly Taia, wife of Hori Taia, assisted by local women of the hapu, carried out the necessary tukutuku work. Taniko patterns on the kaho matapu (called heke tipi elsewhere) are well executed. These were the work of Hori Taia.

At the foot of the poutokomanawa is a large carved figure of Whakahau, who was a great tipuna of the hapu. Hon Taia traces his descent from him as follows:

Whakahau

Pareora

Turama

Werahiko

Miriama (f) = Taia

Hori Taia

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Fig. 32. Rakeiao. Tupuaekura, Rotoiti

As in most Arawa houses the maihi are supported by a facing board behind the amo. The tahu is carved to represent male and female figures, the male being outermost. There appear to be two ridge poles in this house for the manner in which the rafters fit on to the tahu is as follows:

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Inside there are twelve poupou on each side, and seven poupou at the far end.

RAKEAIO

This house is situated at Tapuaekura, Rotoiti. It now is falling into a state of disrepair but is still an imposing structure – one of the larger type of well-carved houses erected in the last century. In. general, Rakeiao resembles Uenuku-mai-rarotonga, and is unique as being the first of the present group of houses on the southern shore of Lake Rotoiti. It was built soon after the eruption in 1886 by the Ngati Rongomai hapu of N’Pikaio, the carvers employed being Te Ngaru Whakapuka of N’Pikiao, and Te Ipu of Mourea. Rakeiao was the fifth son of Rangitihi. He was a famous warrior possessed of supernatural powers, at whose command legions of dragonflies would visit the pa of his enemies and spread havoc in their domiciles. He is said to have exterminated the aboriginal people who lived among Te Arawa.

This house now is in need of repair, the maihi in particular being much decayed. There is no step carving, but both window and doorway are fully carved. The amo figures are single, large, and well-carved, and hold a wahaika and mere, respectively. The tekoteko with the large koruru head below shows a striking resemblance to Uenuku-mai-rarotonga and Houmatawhiti. It appears that in the early 1900’s a considerable renovation took place and Ropeta Curtiss was employed to undertake some new carving. The whakapapa of Rakeiao, showing his descent from Tamatekapua, is given below. This was given to us by Mrs. Kanea Phillips, daughter of the late Mita Taupopoki, of Whakarewarewa.

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Fig. 33. Uenuku mai Rarotonga, the original house as it stood at Maketu.

Tamatekapua

Kahumatamomoe

Tawakemoetahanga

Uenuki-mai-rarotonga

Rangitihi — Manawakotokoto (3rd wife)

RAKEIAO

We are indebted to Albert Inia who supplied us with much of the above information on this house. Mr. Inia is the present owner of this house, living alongside it with his wife in the now deserted settlement.

UENUKU-MAI-RAROTONGA, PUNAWHAKAREIA, LAKE ROTOITI

This is one of the famous houses of Te Arawa. It was erected on the hill at Maketu about 1880 or even earlier. It seems that a group of several carvers were employed on it; for we have been variously informed that Wero, carvers from Whanau Apanui, and others were employed on the carving. It is obvious from the patterns, however, that Wero played a large part in the work. When the population of Maketu migrated to Lake Rotoiti about the close of last century, the house was abandoned by its owners, the Ngati Rangiunuora clan of Ngati Pikiao. But not for long did the carvings remain; and under the direction of the chief Te Rauparaha Mataia they were stripped off and taken to Rotoiti. Here they were attached to an enlarged house of the same name now used almost exclusively as a church. The lady responsible for the rebuilding of the house at Rotoiti was Rangipawa Pokiha (third and last wife of Major Fox) , who had no descendants. New carvings were added, and eventually on 30th October, 1926, the enlarged building was opened.

Features of the carving are as follows: The amo are in two pieces, a lower and later carving having been added below. The maihi are fully carved with human figures in recumbent posture resembling those on the house, Houmaitawhiti. The carving shows two upper figures with heads horizontal standing on a large conventionalized and double-tongued figure below.

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Fig. 34. Uenuku-mai-rarotonga, Rotoiti.

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Fig. 35. Interior of Uenuku-mai-rarotonga, Rotoiti.

The back wall of the porch has carved panels as in the old Tamatekapua . The inside carved figures have, many of them, a toroa or torea on each side of the human figure as in Nuku-te-apiapi at Whakarewarewa, Rangitihi in the Auckland Museum, and other houses whose carvers were trained in the school of Wero and his compeers. A pair of embracing figures is on an almost square block beneath the window. The pane has three figures carved thereon, and in accordance with an ancient custom now rarely seen, the outermost figure has no head save for the large out-facing koruru which should represent Uenuku-rnai-rarotonga.

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Fig. 36. Amo maihi of Uruika, Rotoiti.

URUIKA, TAPUAEKURA

Uruika is another Ngati N’Pikiao house standing at Tapuaekura on the southern shore of Lake Rotoiti. It was built, by Whiti Wineti, who employed Te Ngaru and Nutana of, Ngati Kawiti to undertake the carving. The house was opened in 1908, but renovation has taken place since then and another reopening function took place in 1938, when a hall, Kauiarangi, was built close at hand. The poupou of the porch then were carved at the Rotorua School of Carving under Pine Taiapa. This information was supplied by Timi Ratema, son-in-law of the famous carver Tene, and father of Guide Rangi. The Local hapu is called Ngati Tamateatutahi.

The raparapa have typical ngututa and four fairly long finger projections ending in a human head. Tiakiawa Tahuriorangi of Ngati Pikiao has given us the following whakapapa of Uruika: This descent of Tamatekapua is the one adopted by many of the learned men of Rotoiti and differs from that given by the Rotorua tribes:

Puhaorangi

Ohomairangi

Muturangi

Mawake

Uruika

Te Rangitapu

Houmaitawhiti

Tamatekapua

MAKAHAE, TE KAHIKA PA, TE PUKE

This is a large carved house with much black-and-white puhoro design in the porch. It was carved by Rukingi Haupapa and his son, Rotohiko, from Rotorua. The maihi are heavily carved and a tara-tara-o-kai pattern appears thereon as well as at the feet of the amo figures and on the window carvings. The raparapa has four finger projections with a ngututa head above and a manaia below. Some takarangi spirals in the carving are S curve and some interlock. The pane and the paepae are uncarved. Makahae was the grandson of Hei and the eldest son of Tapuika, the local hapu being Tapuika.

MOKO, WAITANGI PA, TE PUKE

The following notes were received from Te Maria te Para, a local elder or kaumatua. This is the oldest standing house in the district, having been erected some years before the house “Hei” at Manoeka Pa, Te Puke. The carver was Pita Wharetoroa, assisted by Renata, of Rotorua, who also painted the heke. The following are ancestors represented on the house:-

On the tahu inside the porch is a male figure representing Moko and a female figure representing Pureti, his wife. The tekoteko is Rangitua-pake and the two heads below the tekoteko represent his sons, Makaua and Tukino. Rangituapake was a grandson of Moko.

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Fig. 37. Moko, Waitangi Pa, Te Puke.

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Fig. 38. Amo maihi of carved house Moko, Waitangi Pa, Te Puke, Fig. 39. Amo maihi of Tia, showing original carvings.

Moko = Pureti

Te Apuranga

Rangituapake

Makaua                                      Tukino

This is the only house in the Bay of Plenty in which the heke curve below to fit into the poupou; and this feature may account for the fact that it has stood so long; for according to Hemana Pokiha it was erected prior to the Tararewa Eruption in 1886.

The maihi are uncarved except for the very short terminal raparapa, which has a rather cramped manaia carved above and below the finger projections, which are disguised with black and white paint. Both the maihi and the amo are square-cut, the amo figure having its head on one side at right angles to the body and reminiscent of the maihi figures of Uenuku-rnai-rarotonga. The step is low and uncarved. There is no carving around the window; but there is a curious pare of unusual design above the doorway. There are three human figures represented with arms upraised, while no manaia are present, though there are takarangi spirals between the figures. The whakawae apparently are very old, being only 5 feet high. The other against which the door abuts when closed is approximately 18 inches deep. The other is less because the door slides behind it. The tukutuku panels have a most unusual feature in that some of them have the slats placed diagonally (the kakaho behind are also diagonally placed in the opposite direction). The slats are all black and narrower than is usual. The poutokomanawa has a figure at the base with a fine, tattooed head. The hands have five fingers. Male and female figures are carved on the pane of the tahu above the porch.

This house is built according to an old style in which very thick walls were used. Here they measure approximately eighteen inches through, the area between the outer and inner walls being filled in with native grasses and raupo. It was explained to us that when the iron roof was used to replace the original thatch, the old walls were retained.

The maihi of the house are supported below, firstly by an oblique slit in the outer poupou, which also support the outermost porch heke; and secondly by the planks of the outside wall. So the outer poupou of the porch are constructed above in the following manner:

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The marae where Moko is situated, was apparently known formerly as Otupango.

TIA, TE PUKE

Tia is situated at Te Paamu, Rangiuru Road, Te Puke, and is owned by the Ngati Marukukere family of the Tapuika hapu. This is a relatively modern house which was opened by Taua or Tutanekai in 1912. The carver was Hune Pitini, of Ngati Rangiwewehi. Tia, who was the father of Tapuika and uncle to Tama te Kapua, was one of the migrants who came on the Arawa canoe.

The original maihi, which have recently been replaced, are carved on the lower border only except on the raparapa where there are four finger projections with a ngututa head above them. The old amo, which have also been replaced, are well carved, the upper figures with square, upright heads, open mouths, and hands with three fingers downpointing in front of the body on each side. The lower amo figure consists of a plain carved upright head only. The window, the pane and the poupou of the porch are uncarved, and the paepae is absent. There are three figures on the pare, each with arms upraised and with heads wide across the eyes and narrow at the mouth. This house presents a slightly unusual appearance as all rafter patterns, are painted in black and white.

The new carvings are the work of the well known carver Eramiha. The maihi have a clear space as on the original Tamatekapua; but here there is a triangular carved area above and below with a lower border of typical carving. The raparapa are short with a ngututa head, four finger projections, and a manaia at the ends. The amo figures are single. The heads slope obliquely above, as in certain East Coast houses, and the construction of the figures are typical Ngati Whakaue with folded legs below.

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Fig. 40. Tia, near Te Puke, showing new carvings.

TE HEI, MANOEKA PA, TE PUKE

Te Hei was erected in 1899 by the late chief, Tarahina, the carvers being Taiko and Tu te Rangiwhakaea bf Ngati Pikiao. The most important feature of this house is the lower slab at the base of the porch wall (probably originally from a canoe). This was brought from the famous house, Rangitihi, at Rotoiti, once owned by Waata Taranui brother of our informant on many houses of the Bay of Plenty, Hemana Pokiha. In this instance the information was supplied by Potene Hirini.

The maihi are carved on the lower border only; and there is a large ngututa head on the raparapa, with five finger projections emanating from its mouth. The amo are heavily made and well carved, the upper figure with four fingers and a thumb, an unusual feature in Arawa craftsmanship. The pare over the door has three typical figures but is outstanding because of the unusual number of eyes on the surface decorations. The tekoteko consists of a complete human figure standing on a koruru at the maihi apex.

The ancestor Hai came to New Zealand in the Arawa canoe. He is said to have achieved distinction on the voyage as the first to realise that it was the machinations of Ngotoro-i-rangi that were responsible for the perilous state of the canoe when it nearly sank in the whirlpool of Te Parata, and was on his way to plead with the great tohunga when he was forestalled by Ihenga.

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Fig. 41. Carved house, “Te Hei,” Manoeka Pa, Te Puke

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Fig. 42. Amo maihi of “Te Hei,” Manoeka Pa, Te Puke.

WAITAHA A HEI, OTAMARAKAU

Waitaha a Hei is situated at Otamarakau on the Whakatane Road, 15 miles from Te Puke. The following notes are from Mihikau, of Otamarakau Pa. The house is named after Waitaha, son of Hei, who was an uncle of Tamatekapua, and came on the Arawa canoe. The local hapu of Te Arawa is Ngati Makino. The present house is the third carved house on this site, the first being called Koura. Mrs. Mihikau tells us that it was erected when her father was a boy of ten or eleven years. Mihikau was born about 1895; so Koura must have been erected about 1870. The carver of Koura was Ngaoko; but Mrs. Mihikau did not know his hapu. However, Mr. Kepa tells us that the carver Ngaoko was of Ngati Hinekura and that Tiweka, who assisted him, belonged to the same generation as Wero. Some of Ngaoko’s carvings, including the whakawae of the door and the tekoteko of the original house are on Waitaha a Hei as it stands today.

The date of erection of the first Waitaha a Hei is unknown. Some new carving for this house was done by Tiweka (above mentioned). The present house probably was erected early in the present century or maybe it was simply a renovated form of the first Waitaha. The last renovation of the present house took place in 1932-33. The following are the ancestors represented in the house :

Tuwhakarei is the tekoteko;
Waikorapa is an infant held by Tuwhakarei;
Peru is the koruru;
Tutauaroa is the left amo;
Rongomatau is the right amo (his descendants live in Waikato);
Manu is the figure at the base of the poutokomanawa;
Taiwhanake (father of Manu) is the figure at the base of the poutahu. (This figure has been cut off and removed at the poutahu has decayed.).

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Fig. 43. Porch roof, “Te Hei,” Manoeka Pa, Te Puke, Fig. 44. Tahourangi, Rangiuru, Te Puke.

The adjacent dining-room is named after Ruapotau, who was the wife of Waitaha.

Inside the house are painted heke and tukutuku panels. Mrs. Mihikau confirmed what we had heard at various localities to the effect that tukutuku is not an Arawa term; but that turapa is the correct name to use in the Thermal area.

The maihi end in five finger projections. The amo have each a single figure with long legs, the knees being almost touching. There is a lizard between the knees and a tail-less ngarara (so-called by Mihikau) between the feet. The pare has a central human figure and curved manaia at each side. In between the space is filled up with elongate double-headed manaia. Mrs. Mihikau said that this pare did not come from the old house, Koura, but was later work.

The poutokomanawa has a naturalistic figure at its base. The whakawae have been added to at the bottom, the original height of the door having been less than five feet; so probably these belonged to the old house, Koura.

There is an ancient scarped fortress near the house, which Mihikau says is called Maungatea and is mentioned in many old songs.

TUHOURANGI, RANGIURU

Tuhourangi is seventeen miles from Tauranga and was first erected in 1905, but was rebuilt and reopened in 1924 by Judge Holland. Aritaku Wihapi told us that the poutokomanawa was carved by Ropata Curtiss, while the other carvings were the work of Iharaira Piripi Hikairo, husband of Mrs. Kanea Phillips, of Whakarewarewa. The tukutuku were done by local women, Mrs. Te Amo, Mrs. Heeney, and Mrs. Kokiri.

Tuhourangi is remarkable in having the maihi completely uncarved. The amo are large and well-carved, each portraying two figures, the upper most of which is a typical koruru figure of the Okataina School. The paepae is absent. A carved tekoteko is present. Above the doorway is a typical pare with a central human figure flanked by large takarangi spirals and curved manaia at the ends. A dado running round the inside is painted in imitation taniko.

Tuhourangi was the youngest of the eight hearts (sons) of Rangitihi. He was the St. George of Te Arawa who slew dragons and monsters that infested the Thermal regions, and made the countryside safe for all men He was a giant among men. Sir George Grey (Polynesian Mythology, 1855, p. 93) tells us that his bones were set up by high priests in sacred places for sacrifices when the fishing season commenced, and when they were attacking an enemy. At the time the island of Mokoia was stormed and taken by Nga Puhi they were probably carried off or had been buried or secreted in a safe place.

TAWAKEMOETAHANGA, PUKEHINA

This house, which is 29 miles from Tauranga, when visited by us in January, 1946, had just been painted a particularly vivid red and made a very pleasing picture. It was opened on the 21st October, 1925. The maihi are fully carved with the usual patterns carved on the lower borders. Above are recumbent manaia and various upright manaia, some of the toroa type. The raparapa present the typical ngututa figures facing downwards and a little cramped, with three finger projections and full-sized manaia on the ends. Two conventionalized and typical figures appear on the amo. There are no carved poupou in the porch and the frontal poutahu is plain.

The pare consists of the usual three figures with raised arms, the outer figures being flanked by upright manaia. Instead of the usual eyed treatment of the pare ends a series of loops or coils is carved along the edges. There is no tukutuku in this house; but inside the house the most striking feature is the heavy central poutokomanawa which is fully carved on four sides, while its lower part has been well shaped into a fully carved figure.

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Fig. 45. Tawakemoetahanga, Pukehina.

On the maihi of this house is to be seen a very interesting feature in the sinuous manaia type with a beak at each end of the body. This manaia belongs largely to the Bay of Plenty. It is well illustrated on a curious type of pare in Otago Museum. Large manaia forms of the maihi have the legs folded one within the other. The rafters or heke fit into slots in the poupou and there is an oblique ledge cut out of the facing boards of the end walls to support the lower maihi. This latter feature is the rule in most houses of Te Arawa. In this house also poles are erected to assist in holding the raparapa, a feature commonly seen in the older houses when the raparapa was longer and reached nearer to the ground.

Mrs. Horne, widow of the elder who built the house, stated that this was the last house carved by Te Ngaru, the younger, of N’Pikiao. The hapu which owns the house is the Ngati Whakahemo hapu of Te Arawa. The ancestor represented by the tekoteko is Maruahaira.

Tawakemoetahanga, after whom this house is named, was the grandson of Tamatekapua and father of Uenuku-mai-rarotonga.

TE AWHI O TE RANGI, MAKETU

This was a relatively modern carved house which stood on the Tararua marae on the hill at Maketu. It was carved chiefly by Honatamakoro, of Ngati Awa, but was burnt down in 1939. This was on the site of the original Arawa pa where three famous carved houses of Te Arawa Houmaitawhiti Kawa-tapu-a-rangi and Uenuku-mai-rarotonga stood in the seventies of last century. One carving of Te Awhi o te rangi was saved, and this is still on the spot. During a recent visit, August, 1945, two carvers were commencing to work on the timbers of a new Te Awhi o te rangi. They were Takiura Mita, of Ngati Pikiao, and Kaka Niao, grandson of the well-known N’Tarawhai carver, Eramiha Kapua. Te Awhi o te rangi is literally- The Embrace of Heaven.

WHAKAUE MAKETU, BAY OF PLENTY

This is a large, well-carved building - to a large extent a copy of the former Tftmatekapua at Ohinemutu. It is said to be one of the first efforts of the Maori School of Arts and Crafts under Mr. Hamilton, at Rotorua. The amo are higher than usual, up to 12 ft., and are each carved to portray two complete human figures. The maihi are not so well carved as are some of the later efforts of the School, but are covered with typical Ngati Tarawhai manaia. The ngututa faces down the raparapa and has a ngutuihe type of upper lip. There are four finger projections on the raparapa, each with a row of roughly-cut manaia heads thereon. A curious feature of the terminal manaia of the raparapa is that they have fish tails.

The tekoteko of the mahai apex is Hatupatu, the story of whose adventures is given in Sir George Grey’s Polynesian Mythology. A not very usual feature is the large carved figure in front of the porch in front of the poutahu but not part of it. The carved border around the window is heavier than usual; and the whakawae also are heavily carved. The pare has a large central figure with takarangi spirals and terminal manaia. The rafters of the porch are on edge as in European buildings, and do not fit into the poupou of the porch but into the heke tipi. The ridge-poIe of Whakaue was designed by Mr. Rangi Royal.

The two carvings of single figures beneath the window of the porch are unusual and resemble a similar feature of Uruika at Rotoiti. The edge on rafters touch but do not fit into the poupou, and the heketipi is a series of plates with the heke fitting down between them. Inside there are twelve plain poupou on each side and seven on the back wall. There is a central painted kaho crossing panel spaces with imitation tukutuku above. The central poutokomanawa is absent.

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Fig. 46. Whakaue, Maketu.

The ancestor, Whakaue , or Whakauekaipapa, as he sometimes is called, was the son of Uenukukopako, and father of five children, the fourth of whom was the famous Tutanekai. Whakaue was the progenitor of the large hapu of Te Arawa-Ngati Whakaue.

RANGIAORJA, MATATA

The first house of this name to stand at Matata was blown down in a gale in the 80’s of last century, and doubtless was built about 1850, for at the end of thirty years most whare whakairo are in need of repairs and timbers appear to become weakened, The name of the carver is unknown. The house was not rebuilt until 1927 and appears to have been formally opened in 1933. Both the interior poapou and those of the porch are painted. The maihi are carved on the lower border, and the raparapa has five finger projections with the ngututa head below them instead of above, as in other houses. The amo have each two figures carved thereon, each with the unusual feature showing two straps or raised bands extending from the eyes to the centre of the forehead. The upper figures have longer legs than is usual. No paepae kai awha is present and carving around the window is missing.

Rangiaohia was a son of Rangitihi, and was a famous seer, priest and graduate of the schools of learning. He has been depicted as holding the three baskets of knowledge pertaining to things celestial, terrestrial and sub-terrestrial known in Maori lore.

CARVED HOUSE, ORAKEI-KARAKO

This house was photographed with the village of Orakei-Karako by Josiah Martin somewhere about the 80’s or 80’s of last century. It was an old thatched house of a width comparable with most large Arawa houses of the day but apparently of no great depth so that inside it must have been almost square. The carved amo were logs with heavily made figures extending upwards slightly above the maihi. The presence of rafter design on the maihi is of much interest, and the short raparapa are typically Arawa of the later Ariaha school. A single carved head is situated at the maihi apex. Unfortunately the photograph of the house does not show full details. We understand that the village as seen in Martin’s photograph has now disappeared; but that some counterpart of the old house remained until 1936, and was then regarded as highly tapu. Two photographs of the “village” have been published, one in the Hot Lakes Wonderland, a pictorial guide to the thermal phenomena of New Zealand, published by H. Brett in the 90’s of last century and the other a Government publication entitled Wonderland: Taupo Volcanic Zone by Margaret Bullock, 1899, p. 58.

Of interest is Margaret Bullock’s account, p. 57. She states, “The appearance of the place has altered since Dr. Hochstetter’s time. Then a fortified stockade crowned a freshly terraced hill overlooking the village, and the Natives were on the qui vive for hostile demonstrations from an ancient enemy. Now scrub covers the terraces, the stockade has vanished, and the Natives also, save one family, while a dilapidated runanga house and one or two huts are all that remain of the village.”