Tūhourangi Ngāti Wāhiao have seen the temporary return of their sacred items from Rotorua Museum, in a ceremony held at Te Pākira marae over the weekend.
By Te Okiwa McLean, Ethan Oneroa
The collection of taonga includes taiaha (wooden war weapon), a pouwhenua (land marker), as well as a haki (flag) among other items, all of which belonged to prominent ancestors of Tūhourangi Ngāti Wāhiao.
Discussions about returning the items were established after the museum closed in 2016. Iwi representative and descendant of Parakaia Rangawhenua, Jacob Tapiata, said it was an exciting day for the tribe, who have long awaited the return of their taonga.
"Ngā taonga kua whakahokia mai i te rangi nei, kua roa nei e noho matatapu atu ana, a, kua kawea mai i te marae nei, kua puta ki te wheiao, ki te ao marama (These items have long been stored away from us, it’s great to see them return to our marae for all of us to see)."
Another descendant of Tūhourangi Ngāti Wāhiao Reokore Potiki told Te Karere there is much history behind these taonga.
"The taonga went out of the whānau and out of the country a long time ago and was returned in 1989, and then in 1992, a contingency of whānau went down to Wellington to receive it back from Te Papa and bring it back to Te Whare Tāonga o Te Arawa – Rotorua Museum.
"I roto i te oranga o [te] Māori, he whakapapa, he pūrākau, he karakia, he kōrero (Within the Māori world, everything has a connection, there are stories behind everything)," she said.
Though the return of these taonga are not yet permanent, requests by whānau of Tūhourangi Ngāti Wāhiao have been made that some of the 14 taonga remain with their rightful kaitiaki. When asked about this by Te Karere, Rotorua Lakes Council partnership advisor Clark Pirika says that it is a discussion that is yet to be made.
"He kōrero anō tātou ki a tātou e pā ana i te hokinga mai i ngā taonga (That's another conversation we need to make between ourselves in terms of whether the taonga will be returned permanently)."
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