item details
NameHei matau (pendant)
ProductionUnknown; carver; 1700-1850; New Zealand
Classificationpendants
Materialspounamu, kahurangi (stone)
Materials SummaryManufactured by hand using stone, sandstone, and water.
Techniqueslapidary
DimensionsOverall: 76mm (width), 90mm (length), 9mm (depth)
Registration NumberME015518
Credit linePurchased 1991
Overview
Hei matau are stylised fish hook neck pendants, usually made from pounamu (New Zealand greenstone). This hei matau (fish hook pendant) is made from the highly valued kahurangi (pale) variety of pounamu (New Zealand greenstone).
Symbolic representations
Hei matau are symbolic representations of the fish hook used by the ancestral Polynesian cultural hero Māui. According to legend, Māui hauled up the North Island of New Zealand, Te-Ika-a-Māui (the great fish of Māui), from the depths of the ocean during a fishing expedition with his brothers. Hei matau also denote the importance of fishing to Māori, and their relationship to Tangaroa (the guardian of the sea and its environs).