New Zealand What is Matariki

1. What is Matariki?

2. Welcome to the land of Aotearoa (New Zealand) Matariki is the Maori name for the Pleiades constellation which appears above the horizon in early June signifying the start of the Maori New Year. Traditionally this is the time when new crops are planted - and the beginning of a new cycle of growth.

3. New Zealand ‘A Slice of Heaven’ Matariki is the Maori name for the group of stars also known as the Pleiades star cluster or The Seven Sisters. The Maori new year is marked by the rise of Matariki and the sighting of the next new moon. The pre-dawn rise of Matariki can be seen in the last few days of May every year and the new year is marked at the sighting of the next new moon which occurs during June.

4. Matariki has two meanings, both referring to a tiny constellation of stars; Mata Riki (Tiny Eyes) and Mata Ariki (Eyes of God).

5. Traditionally, depending on the visibility of Matariki, the coming season's crop was thought to be determined. The brighter the stars indicated the warmer the season would be and thus a more productive crop. It was also seen as an important time for family to gather and reflect on the past and the future.

6. Today Matariki means celebrating the unique place in which Maori lives and giving respect to the land they live on.

7. Matariki is celebrated with education, remembrance and the planting of new trees and crops signalling new beginnings. Hongi ... traditional Maori form of greeting

8. Matariki was the optimum time for new harvests, and ceremonial offerings to the land-based gods Rongo, Uenuku and Whiro to ensure good crops for the coming year. 

9. It was also seen as a perfect time to learn about the land we live on and to remember whakapapa (ancestry) who have passed from this world to the next and the legacy they left behind.

10. Rangi - Sky-father - embracing Papa-Tua-Nuku - Earth-mother. Rangi is on the bottom front, shown by a large koru design, topped by a double spiral niho-kuri - a dog tooth notch is used, and Papa-Tua-Nuku is depicted being pulled away to enable Tane’s brothers and sisters to leave the womb. The row of piko, or new ferns, represent her children and descendants. Papa has a single spiral attached with niho-taniwha - dragon tooth notching. NATURE’S ORDER Sperm whale bone carving by Christopher "Kiri" Matatahi

11. All Iwi (Maori Tribes) celebrate Matariki, although they may celebrate at different times. For some tribes celebrations are held when Matariki is first seen in the dawn sky, for others it is celebrated after the full moon rises, and for others the dawn of the next new moon.

12. The sky was used by Maori for many reasons throughout history. Reading from the vast volumes of stars was a way of preserving history, knowledge, culture and maintaining ancient practices. The time of Matariki was a celebration in all customs and beliefs, so arts in its many forms were very important to this period.

13. The appearance of the star cluster known as Matariki is a time to celebrate New Zealand's unique history and place in the world. New Zealand Post marks the start of the Māori New Year with its Matariki 2011 - HeiMatau stamp issue. New Zealand Post is also a principal sponsor of the Auckland and Wellington Matariki festivals

16. In 2010 New Zealand Post proudly marked the occasion with a unique stamp collection focused on manu tukutuku (traditional Maori kites). Authentic emblems of Maori cultural practice, these kites are also rich in cultural significance and an integral part of Maori folklore and rituals. ‘Manu tukutuku’ – or Maori kites –are the theme of the third annual New Zealand Post Matariki stamp series, marking the dawn of the new Maori year.

17. 50c – Manu Aute Maori made many of their kites in the shape of birds (manu). The 50 cent stamp shows the manu aute, a kite in the shape of a bird that traditionally represents the manifestation of a person’s soul or spirit. The manu aute on the stamp is one of the largest birdlike kites and is thought to be the oldest of all surviving specimens. It is held at the Auckland War Memorial Museum - Tamaki Paenga Hira.

18. $1.80 – Manu Taratahi The manu taratahi on the $1.80 stamp is one of only four known specimens that have survived to the present day. Manu taratahi were named after the single plume projecting from the upper end of the kite (taratahi means end point). The kite featured on this stamp is also part of the Auckland War Memorial Museum’s collection.

19. The contemporary weaver, Veranoa Hetet, was specially commissioned by New Zealand Post to create two of the kites featured in the stamp release – the manu pātiki on the $1.00 stamp and the ūpoko tangata on the $2.30 stamp. The ūpoko tangata, traditionally named after the plant they were made from, were smaller than other kites and it is believed they were made for younger kite flyers. The manu pātiki takes the form familiar to many modern kite makers – two rods crossed at right angles.  The finished shape was likened to a flounder (pātiki).

20. Traditionally manu tukutuku were produced and flown at the time of Matariki.

22. The iconic sculpture Ferns, by prominent New Zealand artist Neil Dawson, suspended over Civic Square, Wellington

23. Silver fern sculpture; national emblem; Queenstown Gardens, South Island, New Zealand

25. The detailed carvings on the outside of the Te Whare Runanga Marae, from the Tekoteko - the carving of a man-like figure on top of the Marae, to the tukutuku and kowhaiwhai patterns inside, work together to tell the history and genealogy of their iwi (tribe). Te Whare Runanga: The Maori Meeting House

26. Carvings pay respect to the past and every carved piece tells a story. Traditional carvers versed in the oral traditions of the tribe, help to keep Māori culture alive by creating these intricate works, which can be read by those who know how. The shape of the heads, position of the body, as well as the surface patterns work together to record and remember events.

28. 2009 New Zealand Post stamps commemorating Matariki "Matariki is an appropriate time to honour Māori culture as a key influence on, and an integral part of, New Zealand's sense of nationhood“. The six-stamp series honours the heitiki as an icon of Māori Art, and features three contemporary and three historic heitiki.

29. Raponi's contemporary heitiki, carved from pounamu (greenstone), is on the $1.00 stamp. A self-taught carver, Raponi has carved more than 1,000 heitiki since the late 1960s. He specialises in Māori weapons and personal adornments made from New Zealand pounamu and paraoa (whalebone), concentrating mainly on the various forms of heitiki. The use of paraoa signifies a particularly high regard for the taonga being created. The $1.50 stamp shows the contemporary carving by Rangi Kipa. Proficient in various disciplines, Rangi specializes in ta moko, sculpture, and ethnographic taonga and has works in major collections in New Zealand and overseas. Rangi was awarded the 2006 Creative New Zealand Craft/Object Art Fellowship and the Molly Morpeth Canaday Creative Excellence Award in 2004.

30. Rangi Hetet's paraoa carving appears on the $2.30 stamp. The contemporary carving links this year's series to the inaugural series in 2008 when it featured on the $2.00 stamp.

31. Heitiki from the past are honoured on the other three stamps An early pounamu heitiki, which was a feature of the acclaimed Te Maori exhibition that toured the United States in 1984, is on the 50 cent stamp. The permanent home for this taonga is the Auckland War Memorial Museum, and it was selected for the issue to recognise the 25th anniversary of Te Maori The heitiki depicted on the $2.00 stamp is held in Te Papa. Milky green in colour, it shows the variety and beauty of the pounamu, the main material used in carving special and important heitiki.

32. Ka puta a Matariki, ka rere a Whanui. Ko te tohu o te tau Maori Matariki re-appears; Whanui takes flight. Being the sign of the Maori [new] year. The $1.80 stamp features the un provenancedheitiki, also held in Te Papa's collections. While its origin is unknown, this heitiki was selected by Te Papa's curatorial team as an excellent example of the art

34. The Māori language provides this country with a unique language identity from the rest of the world. Māori is becoming more widely spoken. In 1987 the Māori language was named as the official language of New Zealand, along with English. 'Ko Te Reo Te Hā Te Mauri O Te Māoritanga' - Language is the very life-breath of being Māori.

41. The Tino Rangitaratanga flag, the Maori flag.

42. Rakau whakapapa Genealogical staves, mnemonic aid to the reciter of long genealogies.

47. Text & pictures: Internet All  copyrights  belong to their  respective owners Presentation: Sanda Foişoreanu https://www.slideshare.net/michaelasanda https://ma-planete.com/michaelasanda 2011 Sound: Hine e Hine (Maiden, O Maiden) - Hayley Westenra