The Fish of Maui

Jealous Maui's brothers don't want him fishing with them.

Fish from M?ui : M?ui M?ui

Their work at Boston Children's Museum concentrated on cataloguing and digitising the Polyynesian collections and searching for material related to history, myth and legend around the globe. Graduated in museum science from Tufts University. Or as they say in New Zealand, Kia Ora!

I' m a recent E. Growdon intern at Boston Children's Museum working at the collection's warehouse, a place some might liken to a private outback. Just like a fish to a sparkling bait, there is always an artefact that attracts attention and invites you to discover and revive.

I was on the hook myself here at Boston Children's Museum. As I document items meticulously, I keep discovering many who are speaking to me; and this hook I am presenting today definitely talks out loud about its cultured origins, the M?ori of New Zealand. In 1915, this nice fish hook (above) was given to the Boston Children's Museum, along with many other artefacts of early Polynesia at the turn of the world.

The name of the name for the tribal population, Aotearoa, the cultural and linguistic heritage of New Zealand, was handmade by a member of the M?ori group. It has a nice insert of Abalones shell, or M?ori, as it is called in the game.

1 ] The shell of www. amazon.com is placed in a crescent-shaped wooden object, which sits behind the sculptured bonefish-fishhook. 2 ] The shimmery shimmer of the mother-of-pearl would have lured fish to the hooks, which would then be dragged to the top using the handle line technique.

Sennite is a woven string, probably made from the thick and mouldable fibres of the indigenous flax plant (Phormium 10ax and Pormium Cookianum), which can be seen to grow throughout New Zealand. 3 ] A longer line of sennite is wound around the tip of the hook as a handle line, demonstrating the thickness and versatility of the precious fleece used.

What makes this hook so important in comparison to the ones we use here in New England? It' s that there is an intriguing Polyynesian folklore that focuses on a very mighty and holy fishing hook, like the one I share today. It is known in the Polynestinian civilization as "The Fish of M?ui" - or in M?ori, "Te Ika a M?ui".

"The fish hook is therefore not only a utility ist but a venerated shape symbolizing the establishment of the holy countries and waters with which the members of Polish civilization are connected. According to tradition, M?ui is a half god who possesses miraculous forces and yet still resides among his own population.

The M?ui is known as the youngest of five brethren - some stories say that there are three brethren and one older brother, while four older brethren are cited most. But M?ui is the only one who has such magic powers; in fact it is ascribed to him that he discovered fire, ensnared the sundowners and picked the isles from the ocean.

M?ui The North Island of New Zealand, Te Ika and M?ui was fishing with the spell of its fishing hooks. M?ui's hooks has captured something, the largest fish of all! Then M?ui asked his brethren to pedal as harshly as possible to get the big fish to the top.

When they continued, M?ui was standing in the wake and was hauling the largest fish he would ever have caught. When the big fish appeared, M?ui abandoned its brethren to go back to the home of Hawaiki to take back preachers who could perform holy benedictions and rites over it; Hawaiki is supposed to be today's Samoa Isle.

Before he went, he said to his brethren not to have the fish while he was away, but that is far from what the brethren had in mind. Did you know that? After M?ui had gone, his brethren began to cut the big fish into chunks and claimed their stake in the fishery for themselves and their families.

Returning to M?ui to see what his brethren had done, he blamed them for transforming the once shallow and open countryside into the topographical dynamics but majesty of the country that New Zealand is today. 7 ] This is how New Zealand's northern island came into being. "From the ancestor's point of view M?ori: The South Island is situated just off the northern island, in contrast to the present time.

Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Now the big fish of M?ui is the North Island of New Zealand, Te Ika a M?ui. South Island, Te Waka a M?ui, is said to be the kayak that took him and his brethren to the home of Tangaroa; and little Stewart Island is anchored at the back of the zay.

Do you see the form of the sting ray that is the fish of M?ui, today's North Island? The Coromandel Peninsula is its prickly tale; its tip lies where the town of Wellington lies, opposite the bow of the South Island rococo. Or you can see the fish hook from M?ui that flanks the side of the fish and creates today's Hawke's Bay.

The Boston Children's Musem also has many toys of travelling boats similar to the one used by M?ui and its Brotherhood. Acquired between 1901 and 1902, it was given to the Musée in 1940 by the spouse of a US customs officer who was based in today's American Samoa.

The Fishhook of M?ui" is one of many Polyynesian myths that includes the half god, M?ui; it can also be found in tales of M?ui lifting the heavens, embracing the star, discovering fire and helping to build the humans of its own time. As M?ui is a prominent character throughout Polynesia, the title and vocabulary of the history will be changing, but the main topics are the same.

Today's my current opinion of the myth comes from the cultural point of views of M?ori; the entire vocabulary comes from the M?ori site to the best of my knowledge and belief. Hopefully you enjoy the read of M?ui and its magical fishing hook, as well as our own fishing hook and kayak as much as I did.

Kolie Swavely, Boston Children's Museum E. Growdon Intern interprets this tale for the 2017 season. 8 ] The Polynesian Triangle comprises waters and landmass between the contemporary New Zealand, Rapid Nui and Hawaiian states. fish-hook from New Zealand (2 pictures): Boston Children's Museum.

"New Zealand. Encyclopedia of New Zealand. https://teara.govt.nz/en/map/6767/maui-in-new-zealand. Toys of the Samoan canoe: Boston Children's Museum, 802.