item details
NameMaori man holding patiti (tomahawk)
ProductionAmerican Photographic Company (Auckland); photography studio; circa 1869-1877; Auckland
Classificationcartes-de-visite, albumen prints, black-and-white prints, studio portraits
Materialssilver, albumen, printing-out paper
Materials Summaryblack and white photograph, carte-de-visite (unmounted)
Techniquesblack-and-white photography, photography
DimensionsImage: 57mm (width), 91mm (height)
Registration NumberO.021255
Credit linePurchased 1999 with New Zealand Lottery Grants Board funds
Overview
A studio portrait of an unidentified Maori man with moko wearing a kahukiwi (kiwi feather cloak) and holding a patiti, a short fighting axe (tomahawk).
This portrait was taken by The American Photographic Company (APC), which operated in Queen Street, Auckland, between the years 1869 through to about 1876. The APC photographed many Maori subjects during this period, a time when photographs of the new worlds indigenous peoples was very popular. The American Photographic Company was later acquired by Burton Brothers photographers and many of the prints reissued under their name.