COROMANDEL

The reawakening of an art form

Funding from the Mātauranga Māori Te Awe Kōtuku programme has provided support for Pare Hauraki to work with prized kōwhatu (stone), enhancing the connection between people and place.

WORDS: Niki Partsch

Opening Karakia. Left to Right: Travis Tupaea, Rikki Nganame, Hemi Mason Kara, Mako Hikitapua, Frank Waitai, Mita Hamaka Hoera O'Brien, Bridgette Keil, Raikawhakarongotai Jade Bradshaw-Stevens, Layton Robertson (kaiako)

Opening karakia. Left to Right: Travis Tupaea, Rikki Nganame, Hemi Mason Kara, Mako Hikitapua, Frank Waitai, Mita Hamaka Hoera O'Brien, Bridgette Keil, Raikawhakarongotai Jade Bradshaw-Stevens and Layton Robertson (kaiako) Credit: Jamie Watson

The tapping sound of rock against rock filled the river valleys of the Moehau Range, in the northern end of the Coromandel Peninsula, for hundreds of years, but for the last century and a half, they have lain in relative silence. Recently, a series of four hands-on wānanga (learning sessions) run by Pare Hauraki, a grouping of the 12 iwi of Hauraki, brought the distinctive sounds of mahi kōwhatu (stonework) back to Moehau.

These wānanga are about reawakening the art of mahi kōwhatu and enhancing the understanding of mātauranga Māori through introducing participants to pakiwaitara (legends and folklore), pūrākau (traditional knowledge stories), whakapapa (genealogy) and karakia (incantations) alongside the practical work. They also bring knowledge of Moehau, the eponymous ancestor of all the wānanga participants, and of Poutini, who is an ancient legendary figure connected with the area through the highquality stone there. In February, a field trip to various culturally significant sites around Moehau began the first four-day wānanga. Participants learned about kaitiakitanga (guardianship) of the knowledge and processes used to create traditional kōwhatu implements. Their stops included the Ongohi river where they learned how to listen to the language of the river. Later, with the soothing sounds of rocks tumbling against each other on the riverbed, participants carefully selected stone to work with over the next few months. The process of making a toki (axe) begins with breaking and then flaking Hine Kara (basalt) into shape by removing shards to shape the outline of the adze. This is done using a paritauira, which is a hard quartz hammer stone. The next shaping stage is the continuous pecking of rock on rock to reduce any high points. Sandstone and grit are used for finishing/polishing. For the duration of the second wānanga the weather was calm, and the sun mostly shone for the participants as they focused on their work and deepened their knowledge of mahi kōwhatu. "It was amazing to engage with the mahi (work) of our tupuna and know that we were doing the same mahi they engaged in hundreds of years ago," recalls Travis Tupaea, Project Manager.

Their rhythmic tapping again filled the valley with sounds long dormant in this area. Through time the whakapapa and stories of mahi kōwhatu had also become dormant. Some mātauranga has been lost and some important sites forgotten. However, in recent times the combination of recorded story, oral histories and archaeology have combined to identify some of these culturally significant sites. This shared experience of working with stone has led the participants to understanding deeper meanings behind pūrākau. Wānanga Project Leader, Jamie Watson, says, “losing this knowledge led to losing our identity, so being descendants of Moehau is important for the mauri [life force] of the people and the place.” The third wānanga included refining and finishing work on the stone tools. According to Jamie participants were “so engaged with their mahi that some were rising before dawn to start and others working past midnight.” During this wānanga they went into the bush to select and harvest a single Tānikaha tree (Celery Pine) to make handles for the toki they were making. “The whakapapa of the tree is important, as is reviving our relationship and responsibility to the ngahere (bush).” says Jamie. It took them almost two hours to find a tree that would provide the eight toki handles required. After karakia, the group took turns using a toki pounamu (greenstone axe) to fell the small tree. Says Jamie, “This was a really powerful wānanga and the group were moved through reconnecting with the ngahere in this way.” All of the tree will be used except for the small branches. Wood not used for handles will go to carvers. For the final wānanga the participants became the teachers as the core adult group was joined by two groups of school students. Twenty taiohi (youth) from Te Kura o Te Kauaeranga Thames South School joined them and camped there for two nights. The second group of 40 senior Māori students from Te Kura a Rohe O Waiau Coromandel Area School came for the workshop day. There was a big thunderstorm brewing as the children came into the shed for the hui whakatau (greeting gathering). Thunder boomed and vibrated across the valley and lightning brought crackles of light and energy to the dark sky. Jamie described the situation, “it was theatrical, with adze in hand and everyone else seated on buckets and blocks of wood inside.” An exciting backdrop for the children as they listened to pūrākau about Poutama and Maunga Moehau. Then as heavy rain poured down around them, they heard about the history of mahi kōwhatu, and then, as the last speaker finished, the skies cleared.

Over the next few days, the core group continued with their mahi and also began teaching discussions at six workstations. The schoolchildren were invited to follow their interests. “All the kids engaged well by following their own curiosity,” said Jamie. “This was learning outside the classroom in a Māori-led environment, so they were free to move around, or stay as long as they wanted to.” The children immediately spread out, with some moving around often and others staying put when they became intrigued with something. They learnt drilling and flaking and even made sinker stones from Paretauira (granite) for the woven fishing net. The intergenerational knowledge gained from these wānanga have brought back the sounds of mahi kōwhatu, of laughter from kindred spirits working side by side, of the power and presence of karakia and the indulgence of hearing ancient pūrākau recited by expert orators. Funding for the wānanga came from the Government’s Mātauranga Māori Te Awe Kōtuku programme, which funds initiatives to safeguard at-risk mātauranga from the ongoing threat of COVID-19. Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga has received a portion of this funding ($2 million) for a work programme to support the revitalisation of vulnerable mātauranga Māori. Te Papa Atawhai Department of Conservation also supported the project by providing a venue at Moehau for the wānanga. All registered participants were descendants of Pare Hauraki.

Project lead Jamie Watson says that “overall the wānanga have strengthened iwi connections.” Participants are enthusiastic about continuing their work and about new learning, with some immediately signing up after the wānanga for Māori language courses. n

Roimata Taimana guides children with drilling skills at workstation. Credit: Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga

Tauira sanding their toki using sand and water. Credit: Jamie Watson