Te Kohinga Taonga Māori
Many items held at the Film Archive are considered to have significant
Māori content. Known as the Taonga Māori Collection,
these images originate from various tribal areas throughout
the country and covering a range of genres and subjects
The collection includes visual and audio records of karanga, whaikōrero,
Iwi and hapū histories, pōwhiri, wharenui and marae, kapa
haka, Waitangi Day events (dating from 1934), weaving demonstrations,
tukutuku, whakairo and many more.
The Taonga Māori Collection began in the early 1980s, when
the Film Archive acquired a collection of unedited images filmed
by James McDonald for the Dominion Museum. During the 1920s, McDonald,
sometimes accompanied by Te Rangihiroa (Sir Peter Buck) and Sir
Apirana Ngata, went on expeditions to the Gisborne and East Coast
region, Rotorua, Ruatāhuna and the Wanganui River region. By
filming in these places, McDonald captured many images of people,
local hapū and iwi, as well as a way of life that has long
since disappeared.
The preservation of this material was extremely complex. Not only
did the physical conservation of the films have to be undertaken,
but the images also had to be understood and given context. Original
notes taken by McDonald and his companions, Elsdon Best and Johannes
Anderson, helped provide much information. Further context was derived
from consultation with Iwi, to ensure the appropriate representation
of their tīpuna and their activities.
Discussing these films with Iwi alerted the Film Archive to the
reverence of iwi Māori for films and images of their ancestors.
The Archive continues to acquire many items significant to iwi
Māori. As the Taonga Māori Collection increases so too
does the Archive’s responsibility to house and care for the
taonga in the most appropriate manner possible.
The Archive’s current practice is that all material with
significant Māori content automatically becomes part of the
Taonga Māori Collection until such a time that iwi discern
differently.
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