item details
NameMahe (sinker)
ProductionUnknown; carver; 1600-1800; Gisborne
Classificationsinkers (fishing)
Materialsstone, pāua (abalone shell)
Techniquescarving
DimensionsOverall: 76mm (width), 110mm (height), 94mm (length), 1059.3g (weight)
Registration NumberME023780
Credit linePurchased 2005
Overview
A very rare and beautifully crafted, carved Maori stone sinker made from a very heavy, and dense, homogenous stone. The oval shaped sinker, which has a warm sandstone-like colour, has an extended knob that has been perforated at the neck using a stone drill to recieve a fixed line; and enhanced by the addition of a carved mask with paua shell (abalone) inset eyes.
This sinker was found by Rutene Toutou (Ngati ) in 1919 at Marau Point, south of Anaura Bay on New Zealands East Cape. Toutou was an elderly Maori resident of Anaura Bay, and experienced fisherman who knew all the old Maori fishing grounds of the district. Toutou later sold the sinker to a local European who latter added the paua shell eyes.