REVIEW: Award-winning account of Taranaki taonga’s long journey home
Review of Te Motonui Epa, by Rachel Buchanan
Abstract
Te Motonui Epa, by Rachel Buchanan. Wellington: Bridget William Books, 2022. 251 pages. ISBN: 9781990046582.
TE MOTONUI EPA is a brilliant account of how five carved panels that were smuggled out of New Zealand were recovered after a long struggle and prompted major reassessments in official attitudes towards preserving Indigenous artefacts. The story begins during the Musket Wars when Ngāpuhi and Ngāti Whātua rivalry led to clashes in which warriors armed with European weapons fought for dominance in the North Island. As war spread to the Taranaki, Te Ātiawa hapū dismantled their most important public buildings and hid significant pieces in the Peropero swamps.
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References
Deutsche Welle (2019) The Black Box of the Art Business. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TSE2TcMduc
McDonald, K. (June 10, 2023) Māori author's book about stolen Taranaki carvings wins major Australasian prize. https://www.teaomaori.news/maori-authors-book-about-stolen-taranaki-carvings-wins-major-australasian-prize
Sherwood, H. (2022) London museum returns looted Benin City artefacts to Nigeria. https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/nov/28/london-museum-returns-looted-benin-city-artefacts-to-nigeria
Copyright (c) 2023 Philip Cass
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
