Pou Whakarae (Stockade Post)

Carved pou whakarae of dark patina with wheku face, hair dressed in a topknot upon the crown of the head, and hands positioned across a naturalistic body. This carved figure would have originally stood as a sentinel at the top of a tall post as part of a fortified, pallisaded, structure known as a pa. The outer pallisades provided a protective barrier for the tribal community that lived within the pa from attack from rival tribal groups.