(No reserve price)

Carved Histories, the companion volume to Roger Neich's Painted Histories, is now available in paperback for the first time. Carved Histories is the classic account of one of the most influential traditions of Maori wood carving in New Zealand. It brings together the history of Ngāti Tarawhai carving from pre-European times to the present and analyzes the personalities, families, and social changes that have shaped the work. Carved Histories contains biographies of important carvers, a list of all known Ngāti Tarawhai wood carvings, maps and genealogies, as well as black-and-white and color illustrations.
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A Living Art – A Living History

In the Māori worldview, all art forms carry a
a lasting relationship between the past and the present. Much wood carving is thus seen as living and connected to the ancestors. For this reason, the descendants of the original makers or owners should be able to renew this important connection. He Toi Ora means: a living art.

But which iwi (tribal groups) in New Zealand do the museum objects now come from in the Museum Fünf Kontinente? The research runs up against boundaries: almost all pieces were acquired between 1825 and 1914 in London, where their trail has been lost. Often the question about their origin can only be approached based on certain clues.

The search for these clues begins with historical photos and documents. They provide information about the previous owners from whom the museum acquired the objects and their motivation to collect them. Another piece of the puzzle is provided by wood analyses, which offer information about the different species of trees that are used for carving.

The cut motifs can also form part of provenance research, pointing to particular stylistic regions. However, Maori knowledge is vital for classifying and tracing the pieces.