Hinemoana Baker and Te Arikirangi Mamaku from the Maori delegation remove the black cloth that covered the t?puna (ancestors) during the ceremony. Photo: Harry Haase
Hinemoana Baker and Te Arikirangi Mamaku from the Maori delegation remove the black cloth that covered the t?puna (ancestors) during the ceremony. Photo: Harry Haase Ethnographic Collection at Göttingen University returns two MÄori Toi moko to Te Papa Tongarewa Museum New Zealand In 1834, the University of Göttingen received, via the then reigning royal house of the United Kingdom, two Toi moko (preserved MÄori tattooed heads) originally from New Zealand. These Toi Moko are now returning there: on Thursday 15 October 2020, the two Toi moko were handed over to the MÄori and to the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (known as Te Papa) during a ceremony at the University of Göttingen. The two Toi moko have been part of the Ethnographic Collection of the University of Göttingen since 1934, listed as -Kopftrophäen- (head trophies) of the MÄori. "We have no background information about how the two Toi moko came to Europe from New Zealand", says the Curator of the collection, Dr Michael Kraus. "Out of respect for the MÄori, of course, we are very happy to support their return." The MÄori have close ties to their homeland. With the repatriation of the two Toi Moko , they will be reunited with their community and their land.
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