Te Aitanga ā Tāne - The Descendents of Tāne tukutuku
This
tukutuku panel is mounted in the entrance foyer of the Alan
Herbarium at Lincoln.
The label reads: Te Aitanga ā Tāne
(The Descendants of Tāne)
A tukutuku panel created by Mae Taurua of Christchurch. Traditional patterns have been used for the background, with a modern free-style superimposed.
The materials used are mainly traditional; kākaho (culms of Cortaderia spp), held together by white kiekie leaves (Freycinetia baueriana) and yellow pingao leaves (Desmoschoenus spiralis). Wood, leather and cord have been added. Harakeke Phomium tanax) paper and pingao from Puawānganga flowers (Clematis paniculate) on an introduced vine (Vitis spp.) The frame is of painted rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum).
The patterns are:
Background - Aromoana - breaking waves
Left - Poutama - stairway to heaven or striving for better things
Centre - Kaokao - the armpit of a warrior or chevron, a very
old pattern from Hawaiki
Right - Roimata Toroa - the tears of the albatross, grieving
for departed loved ones
Te Kōrero:
A long time ago when the Kai Tahu came to conquer the Banks Peninsula people, a young warrior called Mahi-Ao-Tea wanted to claim some land for himself.
With come close friends Mahi-Ao-Tea left the main party in the canoes, climbed the cliffs and went into the forest.
As they went further into the forest, the trees grew taller and darker. Creaking and groaning the branches closed in around his band. Mahi-Ao-Tea realised that these were Te-Aitanga-ā-hine-Mate-Roa, the wild black pines. Mahi-Ao-Tea and his man had to fight hard to break free into a clear space in the forest.
Here there were clumps of cabbage trees offering shade so the men lay down and were soon asleep. Mahi-Ao-Tea awoke when something touched him. He saw the trees bending over his sleeping man, making soothing sounds and the leaves were gradually smothering them. These cabbage trees were the Ti-ā-Tau-Whetū which smothered their loved ones to death. Mahi-Ao-Tea called out to his men who woke and struggled free.
Mahi-Ao-tea and his men were hungry. They saw a grove of trees with bunches of tempting dark-red berries which they began to eat. Suddenly the branches of these trees began to close around the men like the bars of a cage. These trees were Te-Papa-Tū-ā-Mauheka. Mahi-Ao-Tea, who was not caught, began to chop at the exposed roots of the trees with his toki (adze) which weakened the trees, releasing his men.
After these trials, Mahi-Ao-Tea and his men reached the coast where the canoes were waiting. They were so glad to see their people again that they did not attempt to claim the land.