The University of Aberdeen’s collection of nine tattooed Maori heads (toi moko) will return to their ancestral home of New Zealand, the University announced today (Wednesday, July 19).
The University is making arrangements to repatriate its collection of toi moko to Te Papa (Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa). The toi moko have been in the collection of the University’s Marischal Museum for over a century. The earliest record of one being acquired was in 1821, when Lieutenant Reid of the Royal Navy presented a ‘Head of New Zealand warrior in good preservation’.
The University follows a standard procedure when responding to a request for repatriation. This protocol was recently demonstrated in 2003 when a sacred head-dress was returned to the Kainai Nation/Blood Tribe in Canada.
The repatriation procedure includes an expert panel considering a variety of issues such as their history, the status of the people making the request and the importance of the item being requested, before the University Court makes a decision. The University Court has now agreed to the Panel’s unanimous recommendation that the toi moko be repatriated to the care of Te Papa.
Te Papa will now care for the toi moko according to protocols established with Maori elders. They will also undertake research into their history and provenance.
Marischal Museum has also just opened an exhibition of work by its New Zealand artist-in-residence, Rhondda Greig. Among her works is a large painted glass window ‘Tears for the Return Home of the Toi Moko’.
Neil Curtis, Senior Curator of Marischal Museum, said: “I am very pleased that we have decided to repatriate the toi moko. Not only are they once again going to be treated as ancestors, they will also now be studied and researched in ways that were not possible if they had stayed in Aberdeen.
“Together, the repatriation and Rhondda’s exhibition mark a new stage in the links between Aberdeen and New Zealand.”
James Te Puni, Director Maori Strategy at Te Papa, agrees. He said: “Our discussions with Marischal Museum over the last few years have strengthened the relationship between our institutions and the understanding of why repatriation of these ancestral remains was the right decision.
“We look forward to progressing this repatriation together with our colleagues in Aberdeen, and appreciate their support for our ongoing efforts to return Maori and Moriori human remains to New Zealand.”
The Kaihautü and co-leader of Te Papa, Te Taru White, endorses these comments and is confident that iwi will see this return as an honourable gesture by Marischal Museum and the University of Aberdeen.
Facial tattooing is an important element of traditional Maori life, with complex and beautiful tattoos showing identity and status. Traditionally, after death the heads of revered ancestors were preserved by their kin. During the early 19th century contact between Maori people and European explorers, traders and colonists led to conflict and disruption of Maori society. This included the growth in a trade of Maori treasures and toi moko. To satisfy this demand, in some cases the heads of slaves were tattooed and sold.
The New Zealand Government, through Te Papa, is now supporting Maori attempts to return all toi moko to their ancestral home, where they can again be treated as the remains of ancestors instead of being curiosities in museums around the world.