WAHI TAPU Words by Katherine Edmond Photography by Tim Whittaker
Maintaining the mana
An ongoing project in Central Hawke’s Bay is recording and preserving the area’s important ancestral sites
28 Spring 2011
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WAHI TAPU
Totatqua tiisque corios ped quis reriamus incius eum lab inctis maximodisi optaturio The longest place name in the world is legendary but it takes a bit of practice to reel off its 85 letters:Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu. Central Hawke’s Bay locals shorten it to Taumata for ease of conversation and the name comes up often although, in recent years, few have been to the actual site. But knowing its history and significance have become a whole lot easier following a registration project in the area around Porangahau township. To date there have been 12 wahi tapu registrations covering landscapes, pa sites and toka or rocks; a further 10 are pending. Tamatea Ure Haea was the grandson of Tamatea Arikinui, captain of the Takitimu waka, and father of Kahungunu who became the central ancestor of Ngati Kahungunu. He was also one of the greatest explorers in the history of New Zealand. Dubbed the Maori Marco Polo, Tamatea explored both the land and coastline and left his
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mark on many places by giving them names that are still used today. Taumata, a little hill with a big name, is one of them. Translated, the name means “the hill where Tamatea the great explorer, mountain climber and circumnavigator of the land played his flute in lament to his loved one”. For years many people held the romantic notion that Tamatea wooed a lover on the knoll but the lament was actually for his brother who had been killed in a battle while the siblings were passing through the inland district of Porangahau. Taumata is within the boundary of Ngati Kere and a stronghold of local chief Ngarangiwhakaupoko. Today the site is on land owned by the Scott family who bought and broke-in the block in the 1950s. There’s only a farm track up to the top of the hill but Abe Scott hopes to improve access in the near future. He says that as well as having magnificent views, there is a peacefulness at the site which keeps visitors lingering there longer than they intended. It also has powerful acoustics. “I brought GNS Science in and told them the stories about the sound of Tamatea’s flute travelling down the valley. They found that, at certain times of the day, conditions combine to create a sound road which carries the koauau’s music three times the normal distance.” Donald Tipene QSM, Chairperson of Ngati Kere Rohe Trustees (the local iwi), knew little of the NZHPT when
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his son Anthony became Maori Heritage Adviser for the organisation. At the time there were no NZHPT wahi tapu registrations in Hawke’s Bay. Helping to find and exhibit a collection of Maori artefacts from the Porangahau area in 1990 ignited his interest in local history. Donald was the iwi representative on archaeological surveys in Central Hawke’s Bay and also led an archaeological excavation of a midden site at Rangitoto Pa. These experiences inspired him to set a goal of preserving wahi tapu sites in his tribal area. “My father’s generation never spoke about our sacred sites and didn’t want to for two quite different reasons. There was early colonial teaching that these things were in the past and best ignored but there was also the attitude of our elders that these sites were tapu and best left alone. But once I started doing the research I wanted to recognise and preserve this local Maori history. We had a story but we didn’t have a book. We were also a bit shy and felt we couldn’t foot it with those government organisations. When Anthony joined the NZHPT it opened that door,” says Donald. Evidence of settlement in the Porangahau district dates back to the 1300s. Anthony grew up in the area and knew it was a treasure-trove of significant historical sites. He says it took an effort to bring the local community on board. “The NZHPT was not on the radar in terms of preserving Maori heritage. Local leaders knew it was important to protect wahi tapu but they didn’t know what role the NZHPT could play.” He also had to persuade kaumatua to record their stories for future generations. “When we lose our kaumatua we also lose a whole world of knowledge and stories. We have our own Maori heroes our kids can look up to, including great travellers, sports people and warriors. It’s important we record the information for future generations.” The project has taken four years so far and has involved extensive consultation, surveying sites, recording oral histories and combining them with existing historical data to produce the registration information. Among the registrations completed are seven pa sites, including Te Pa o Tuanui which is located on a cliff-top ridge overlooking the ocean about two kilometres south of Blackhead. The site was once the stronghold of Ngai Te Rangitaurewa. Tuanui Ariki Nui and his people were living at the pa
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The hill with the world’s longest place name “Years ago”, says Donald Tipene, Chairperson of Ngati Kere Rohe Trustees, “our old people would have said ‘don’t even write the name of a sacred place down or word will get around and people will go there and dig for gold’.” But times change and Donald is in favour of sharing knowledge about registered wahi tapu sites with locals and tourists. That ties in with the vision of Abe Scott, a descendent of Tamatea Ure Haea and part-owner of the land where the chief famously lamented the death of his younger brother. The family has put the hilltop site under the care of a trust which is cautiously investigating opportunities for educational and eco tourism. It’s not just New Zealanders who know about Taumata – its name has featured in pop songs, ballads, the introduction to a television show and an advertising jingle. Abe believes that with proper controls and monitoring, the site can be made accessible to visitors to enjoy the spectacular views, the native flora and fauna in surrounding bush and a piece of fascinating history. “It’s our turn to sail the canoe. The ancestor who gave this place its name was a great navigator and adventurer. We want to take that legacy and use it for the good of this area. Tamatea used his skills to help with his people’s survival and we want to do the same. There is a lot of unemployment in Central Hawke’s Bay and opening up this site could generate new opportunities.”
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WAHI TAPU
when Captain James Cook made his second voyage to New Zealand in 1773. They were on the beach to greet HMS Resolution and Tuanui joined the captain in his cabin for refreshments and an exchange of gifts. Among Captain Cook’s presents were feral pigs which quickly multiplied and became known as Captain Cookers. Captain Cook also features in the name of one of the other wahi tapu registrations – that of Tokatea or Cook’s Tooth. The triangular-shaped peak about 10 kilometres inland from the Porangahau coastline is a traditional burial place of rangatira. There is an ancient pa site around its eastern base and a spring once used for tohi ritual (where children were dedicated to particular gods) is located at the western base of the rock. When aligned with hills in the area, the rock was also a marker to locate abundant fishing beds and rocks and, with a 360-degree view from its summit, a strategic lookout during inter-hapu skirmishes. Taikura rock, a mussel-breeding ground off the beach from Te Paerahi Bay at Porangahau has also been registered. Legend has it that Kupe discovered Aotearoa while chasing a pet octopus belonging to Te Wheke a Muturangi which had been robbing his nets. When Te Wheke turned on Kupe, the latter sent his son Taikura ashore to safety. Realising Te Wheke would catch Taikura, Kupe cast a spell to turn his son into a rock. The rock is a popular spot for gathering mussels but not for the Tipene family. “Pre-1950 mussels were never taken from Taikura rock because it’s a breeding ground and my family still won’t harvest there today,” says Donald. Recording important New Zealand history – “the version you are not taught in school,” says Anthony – is a crucial outcome of the project, but it’s also brought other benefits. “It’s changed people’s perspectives and many locations now have a deeper meaning for hapu members,” he says. It’s also revitalised interest in traditional Maori musical instruments, particularly the koauau or traditional flute – played by Tamatea all those years ago to lament his brother’s passing – which is made from bone, wood or, occasionally, stone. Anthony is skilled at playing a range of traditional instruments and is passing the knowledge on to others in the Porangahau district. But the biggest satisfaction for Donald is seeing important places attracting the mana they deserve. “Thirty or 40 years ago I saw major damage done to some of those beautiful sites and it was accepted – no one jumped up and down,” he says. “It’s wonderful to know that won’t happen again and that information is there for our young people.
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“When we lose our kaumatua we also lose a whole world of knowledge and stories” oTHer comPleTed WAHI TAPU regIsTrATIons In THe AreA To dATe Te reinga o mahuru was once a fortress of the rangitane people and, until the 1840s, was a base for resisting attacking war parties. It was heavily fortified and established very early in the history of the tribe. The Pa is highly regarded by the rangitane people as it was one of the few that did not fall to the might of the great muskets war parties, Te ruru and Te Amiowhenua. rangitoto Pa also includes a battleground, Parekura, along with a traditional Tuahu rock, and remains of fortifications
and historical settlement. The local hapu regard rangitoto as a spiritual landmark because of its legacy as a refuge and battle ground. Inter-tribal conflict among Hawke’s Bay tribes resulted in blood being shed at Te Pa o Porangahau. This site is intrinsically linked to the mana of the chief, Te Porangahau, Tuteihunga and Kahukuranui, and the history of ngati Kahungunu (Hawke’s Bay). makaramu Pa, which adjoins mangareia stream and Te
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Taurekaitai river, is thought to be one of the earliest sites to have been occupied in the Porangahau district. It is associated with the feuding among the grandchildren of Te Whatuiapiti which spanned an area stretching from Poukawa along the Heretaunga Plains to the coast at Porangahau. eparaima, also known as Pakaroa and Te Tarake o Tawhiri, is a grave site, while Te Awakari a Tamanui is a man-made canal - an early feat of maori engineering. It is located on an abandoned meander on the south side of the Porangahau river, which flowed past the area
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until the 1960s. There are a series of drainage ditches, a terrace two metres below the rest of the site and a group of pits. Takapau is a sacred rock of ngati manuhiri, ngati Hinetewai and ngati Kere and a traditional mauri (life essence) rock for karengo or seaweed. Another rock, ohinemuhu, is a representation of an important woman turned to stone. ohinemuhu was the daughter of ruawharo, the tohunga of Takitimu, one of the seven canoes which brought maori to new Zealand. The rock is regarded by local hapu as the
map to be updated
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