A Maori visit
In the summer of 1986 Hinemihi was visited by Emily Schuster (great-granddaughter of the carver Tene Waitere) and performance artists from the New Zealand Maori Arts & Crafts Institute, Rotorua.
Emily later recalled her experience of the visit , “We could feel the presence of our ancestors, including those who sheltered inside Hinemihi during the eruption, as well as those who didn’t make it to safety. By touching the carvings we could hear their screams and feel their pain.”
By 1992, Hinemihi had stood in the grounds of Clandon Park for a century. The event was marked by a visit by John Marsh of Ngati Hinemihi and director of the New Zealand Maori Arts & Crafts Institute. After returning to New Zealand he consulted with Ngati Hinemihi about restoring his ancestral meeting house’s missing carvings and appointed two young carvers from the institute to create new pieces for Hinemihi's door and window area.
© Alan Gallop / Hinemihi Collection
The two young carvers were Robert Rika (fourth generation grandson of carver Tene Waitere) and Colin Tihi (third generation grandson of Aporo Wharekaniwha, the Te Wairoa chief). They agreed to produce the work unpaid and in their own time. The original pieces were missing, but had been photographed in detail by Victorian photographer Alfred Burton on a visit to Te Wairoa in 1881.
In 1993, Jim Schuster (Tene Waitere’s great-great-grandson) and his wife Cathy measured Hinemihi for the new carvings and during their visit some of the original pieces from the door and window surround were located in the attic at Clandon Park.
They were officially handed over to the National Trust at dawn on Friday 9 June 1995 - almost 109 years since Tarawera’s violent eruption had cut Hinemihi's life short.
Back to top
Close ties
The arrival of new carvings and the ceremony to accept them created a new profile for Hinemihi both in the UK and New Zealand, particularly between the National Trust and British-based Maori community.
For the last 13 years, the National Trust has been in direct contact with three specific Maori groups: Ngati Hinemihi (Hinemihi’s living descendants), Ngati Ranana (a London-based Maori Group) and the Kohanga reo (a Maori Language ‘nest’).
For London’s Maori community, Hinemihi is more than just a reminder of home. She has become their adopted meeting house, a place to visit either as individuals, with families or in large groups to remember and celebrate ancestors, family and culture back home.
© Hinemihi Collection
Hinemihi’s story continues. A restoration programme is planned, co-ordinated by a Hinemihi Project Group, as part of a formal consultation process. Delegates include representatives from the National Trust, the NZ Historic Places Trust, Maori groups in New Zealand and the UK and other individuals with something to contribute and help conserve Hinemihi’s prestige (mana) for today and future generations.
Planning permission for Hinemihi’s restoration from various UK authorities has yet to be granted and it is still to be decided exactly what work will be undertaken, and when. For example, should she have a new roof to replace Mr. Draper’s English thatch? Should a floor be laid down to replace the compacted earth she has always had? Other questions include commissioning new woven panels for her interior and extending Hinemihi to her original length (she is around one third shorter at Clandon Park than she was at Te Wairoa). Or should she be left as she is?
The Hinemihi project group hopes to address some of these questions in the next few years once funds (estimated to be over £200,000) have been raised.
|
