Overview
In Victorian England, artisans often incorporated animal parts into accessories, and early Pākehā (European New Zealanders) did the same. They stuffed huia for drawing rooms and museum collections, sported huia feathers on their hats, and used the beaks for brooches.
Māori valued huia too, but as symbols of high status rather than fashion statements or the focus of intellectual pursuits. Chiefs often wore the long white-tipped feathers or skins.
1907 marked the last official sighting of huia. Forest clearance for farmland, introduced predators, and demand for curios and museum specimens all contributed to the bird’s extinction. The objects here now serve as a reminder of its demise.