Canoe Bow Piece

Carved prow (Tauihu) of war canoe (waka taua). This carved prow piece for a Māori war canoe is of the pītau style, which features two large pierced scrolls and, at the front, a carved figure with tongue protruding and arms thrown back. pāua (abalone) shell pieces are inserted into the eyes of the primary figure and the manaia (spiritual being) underneath. The figure represents Tūmatauenga, the god of war. Sticking out the tongue was, and is, a Māori gesture of defiance.

According to Māori tradition, New Zealand (Aotearoa) was settled by a fleet of seagoing canoes. An iwi (Tribal Nation) might refer to itself as a waka (canoe), meaning that the members of the group were descended from the crew of a particular, named canoe. The Māori war canoe (waka taua) was not only a vessel used to transport warriors, but a sacred symbol of the village that built it. The waka taua was also seen as a manifestation of the collective body and spirit of the ancestors and of the power (mana) transmitted from them to the community.

According to notes made by the collector C.D. Voy this tauihu was collected on the North Island of New Zealand, near Wellington.