Pākē puakarimu
Acknowledgements
Copyright Reproduced courtesy of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Creator
Unidentified
Identifiers
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa number ME000769
TLF resource R5393
Source
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, http://www.tepapa.govt.nz
Description
This is a pākēpuakarimu, a raincape made from the fibres of puakarimu or clubmoss (‘Lycopodium
deuterodensum’). The body of the cape is woven from muka (flax fibre) using alternate warp strands of
undyed and dyed fibre. Two rows of finely plaited fibre form a band along the top of the cape. The
puakarimu fibre has been dyed red and black using bark dyes and mud mordant, and it has been
woven into the muka in a striking chequerboard pattern. Possibly from the Taupō district of the central
North Island of New Zealand, it was purchased by the Museum of New Zealand in 1904. The cape
measures 76 cm x 126 cm.
Educational value
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This asset highlights an item associated with Māori and their use of the plant puakarimu,
which they valued for its waterproof qualities and thus used primarily to make raincapes.
It is an item that required great skill and expertise to make - weaving techniques ensured the
garment was watertight but also incorporated design and colour to produce a piece of both
functional and aesthetic value.
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It is made from traditionally dyed fibre - Māori used mainly vegetable-based dyes, with the
colour black obtained by first steeping the fibre in water (which had crushed bark soaking in it),
then burying the fibre in dark-coloured mud for a period of time; the fibre was then taken out
and washed, with the black colour imparted to it by the mud and the water acting as a
mordant; the red dye was produced in a similar fashion but without the mud, with stones being
heated and placed into the water (which contained the fibre and bark), and this stone-boiling
process brought out the colouring contained within the bark.
It highlights an important facet of Māori technology and craft - weaving is acknowledged as
having its own life force, and is accorded a level of respect depending on the mana (status) of
the weaver and the qualities of the weaving process.
It highlights the place of pākē puakarimu in connecting Māori with their Polynesian ancestors oral tradition records that the early Polynesian settlers wore raincapes during their early
explorations of New Zealand.
It highlights the adaptation of early Polynesian settlers to the colder New Zealand climate they used puakarimu to provide vital covering for the upper body and shoulders.
It illustrates an exceptional taonga (Māori cultural treasure) - capes incorporating moss fibre
are extremely rare in museum collections, and this is one of only two pākē puakarimu held by
the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.
© Curriculum Corporation and Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, 2006, except where
indicated under Acknowledgements
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