Guide to the Papers of Makereti (as filmed by AJCP)

Drafts and notes, mostly handwritten, for chapter 1, Social organisation and relationship terms (File C. Box 1)

The headings of the more substantial notes include relationship terms, tribe, clan and family group, tribal organisation, kinship, birth, and social classes. The file also contains an incomplete typescript draft of chapter 1.

Drafts and notes, mostly handwritten, for chapter 2, Marriage. (File D. Box 2)

The headings of the more substantial notes include marriage, betrothal, ritual defloration, birth and family names. Interspersed with the notes are typescripts of some of the pages in chapter 2.

Drafts, verse and notes, mostly handwritten, for chapter 3, Children. (File E. Box 2)

Some of the notes on marriage have been wrongly placed in this file. The headings of the more substantial notes include childbirth, tua or tohi (cleansing ceremony), matewahine (menstruation), customs pertaining to birth, marriage, courtship, true story of Hinemoa, adultery, puhi, little children and political marriage. Interspersed with the notes are typescripts of some of the pages in chapter 3.

Handwritten notes for chapter 4, Food. (File F. Box 2)

The headings of the more substantial notes include fishing, birds, preserving pigeons and partridges, kumara (sweet potato), kumara cultivation, kiore (rats), pigs, fruits, tawa berries, fern roots, preparing a meal at Whakarewarewa, cooking, kuri (dog), hinaki (eel traps), origin of the tuna, pa tuna (eel weirs), shell fish, bird snaring places and the beginning of cooking food. Interspersed with the notes are typescripts of a few pages in chapter 4.

Drafts, verse, drawings and handwritten notes for chapter 5, Fire. (File G. Box 3)

The headings of the more substantial notes include Maui's visit to Mahuika (fire goddess), how the Maori made his fire, how fire came into this world.

Drafts, handwritten notes, drawings and plans for chapter 6, Houses. (File H. Box 3)

The headings of the more substantial notes include totara, pataka, whares or houses, Te Kainga Maori, the ko, arts and crafts, ceremonies of habitation, Pa Kainga, and pa or fortifications. Among the notes is a letter from William Dennan (Islip) to T.K. Penniman (1 Jan. 1932).

Drafts, handwritten notes and drawings for chapter 7, war and weapons. (File I. Box 3)

The headings of the more substantial notes include the taiaha, the pouwhenua, mere or pounamu, the kotiate, whakatu waewae (war dance), haka (war dance), two-handed weapons, warriors and their war dances. At the end of the file are a few notes on vocal and instrumental music.

Illustrations and corrections (File J. Box 3)

Lists of illustrations, drawings, and corrections on miscellaneous subjects including building whares (houses), fire-making, fireplaces, the pataka (storehouse), cooking, meals, forbidden foods, division of labour, land and property.

Handwritten notes and songs relating to the village of Motutawa (File K. Box 3)

Motutawa is an island in the middle of Lake Rotokakahi near Rotorua. The notes, some of which are based on publications, mainly relate to the village of Whakarewarewa, where Makereti lived for many years. It had been settled by the survivors of the village of Te Wairora following the eruption of Mount Tarawera in 1886. The headings of the notes include the idea of Whaka village as a tourist resort, houses, the great migration of 1350, Maori pas, tattooing, personal ornaments, burial chests and Maori canoes. There are also notes taken during the hearings of a commission of inquiry in 1926. At the end of the file is a photograph of Wahiao Meeting House.

Catalogue of Maori Collection (File L. Box 3)

Catalogue and notes of the Maori Collection.

Lists, mostly handwritten, of Makereti's collection, which included carvings of whares (houses) and patakas (storehouses) carved figureheads and paddles, stone clubs, baskets, tikis, bone ornaments, skirts, korowai cloaks, feather cloaks, birds' feathers, feather mats, greenstone ornaments and implements, whalebone clubs and carved boxes.

Handwritten and typescript notes on general subjects (File M. Box 3)

The papers include a talk (undated) on the Maori and notes on Maori ancestry, Io the Supreme Being, religious beliefs and practices, the great migration of the canoes in 1350, Maori characteristics, how the boiling hoes and geysers originated, and language and alphabet.

Handwritten notes on weaving and tattooing (File N. Box 3)

The headings of the more substantial notes include flax fibres, weaving clothing, Moko or tattooing, and the story of Mataora.

The headings of the notes include personal enhancement, cleanliness, personal appearance and deformation.

Handwritten notes on religion and time (File O. Box 4)

The headings on the notes include the tohunga (priestly expert), tapu, mana and tapu, Maori religious beliefs and practices, tohunga and tapu, Io the Supreme Being, classification of Maori gods, superstition, Maori cosmogony, the parting of heaven and earth, Maui controls the sun god, Maui, Whetu stars, evidence of star worship, the Maori division of time, the concept of wairua, karakia (prayers), the Tapu school of learning, and burial places

Handwritten and typescript notes on mythology, history, games and dances (File P. Box 4)

The headings on the notes include games, burial ceremonies, social organisation, swimming, creation, evocation of the dead among the Maoris, funeral rites, personification, a war canoe expedition, Tangi (lament for the dead), waiatas and lamentations, and vocabulary.

Pencilled notes on Maori past and present (File Q. Box 4)

The headings of the more substantial items include Maori past and present, the story of the destruction of monsters, canoe voyages, Te Ngahue, on the 'ideality' of ancient New Zealanders, some early explorers, and the arai-te-uru (canoe).

Pencilled notes and poems on Maori legends and songs (File R. Box 4)

The headings of the more substantial items include 'Forword to 'Aotea', 'Chowbokiana or notes about the Antipodes and Antipodeans' (1875), the travels of Ngatoro–i-rangi, the loves of the mountains, omens, tipuas and taniwhas (monsters), the poetry of the Maori, love songs, the Maori in war, and Whakaara pa.

Pencilled notes and poems on Maori legends and songs (File S. Box 4)

The headings of the more substantial items include the Tangata Whemia, child bearing, red ochre kokowai, the migration karakia, the arawa (canoe), other canoes and Paikea (an ancestral figure).

Pencilled notes and drawings on miscellaneous subjects (File T. Box 4)

Many of the papers in the file comprise lists, vocabularies and genealogies, as well as rough jottings. The headings of the more substantial notes include painting and tattooing, 'New Zealand present home of the Maori', the mental life of the home, morals, kaninga, home of the Maori, physical and mentality, chiefs, social life, hangi (food), stature of the Maoris, and 'the Maori as he was'. There is also the draft of a speech that Makereti gave at Rotorua during her visit in 1926.

In addition to brief jottings, many of the papers comprise bibliographical references and notes based on published works on New Zealand history. The headings of the somewhat more substantial notes include tohi or tua (baptismal rites), thermal springs and the home life of the Maori. Some of the papers in the file are of very poor legibility.

Index cards containing notes by Makereti taken from published sources (File Box 5)

The sources include Arthur Thomson. The story of New Zealand (1859), William Brown, New Zealand and its aborigines (1845), J.G. Frazer. Psyche's task (1909), Elsdon Best. The Maori (1924), S. Percy Smith. Hawaiki (1898), P.A. Vaile. New Zealand (1921), John Nicholas. Narrative of a voyage to New Zealand (1817), Richard Cruise. Journal of a ten months' residence in New Zealand (1823), Be T. Kuiti, Where the white man treads (1905), Richard Taylor Te Ika Maui, or New Zealand and its inhabitants (1855), and the journals of Captain James Cook.

Tuhourangi; claim by Mita Taupopoki, 1887 (File U. Box 5)

Mita Taupopoki (d. 1935) grew up near Lake Rotorua. In the 1880s he became a leading figure in disputes over land in the Rotorua region in the Native Land Court. The eruption of Mount Tarawera in 1886 killed many Tuhourangi people and destroyed the livelihood of the survivors. In the following year Taupopoki was the only Tuhourangi witness in a major case in the Native Land Court, extending over several weeks and involving 21 groups of counter-claimants. The court eventually recognised Tohourangi's claims to the major part of the Rotomahana-Parekarangi land block. The papers consist of a handwritten transcript of Taupoki's testimony (51pp) and a few pages of genealogies.

Origin of Maori race (File V. Box 5)

Origin of the Maori race.

Typescript essay, undated, entitled 'Origin of the Maori race'. (6pp.) The author is not named.

Maori symbolism (File W. Box 5)

The file contains typescript copies of an article by Ettie Rout on Maori symbolism, published in the Journal of the Polynesian Society (Dec. 1926). The other papers consist of printed documents, newspaper cuttings and a few letters on miscellaneous subjects, dating from 1910 to 1930. Some of them are written in Maori. Many of the cuttings are from New Zealand Free Lance. The publications include a booklet entitled New Zealand, land of opportunity (Wellington, 1924) and an undated address by Sir James Allen entitled New Zealand (an outpost of empire).

Letter and poems of T.K. Penniman, 1936 (File X. Box 5)

The letter (4 July 1936) of Thomas Penniman, the Oxford anthropologist, was written to Makereti's sister Bella Wiari in Whakarewarewa and expressed his wish to publish Makereti's manuscript, provided he had permission of Wiari and William Dennan, Makereti's son. There is also the draft of an undated letter from Maori chiefs to Thomas Mackenzie concerning Maori lands. The poems by W. Buckle are entitled 'Hinemoa' (1907) and Hymn to New Zealand' (1913).

Genealogies (1 envelope and 1 very long roll) (File Box 6)

Maori genealogies, manuscript and typescript, in various formats.

3 volumes of Maori writings, c. 1893-1894 (File Box 7)

The volumes appear to contain copies of transcripts and related documents of the Native Land Court which considered the block of land at Rotorua known as Whakarewarewa. It had originally awarded the land equally to the three hapu (clans) of Wahiao and the three hapu of Ngati Whakaue in 1883. In 1893 the Court re-partitioned the block and awarded the predominant part to Ngati Whakaue.

1. Volume in Makereti's handwriting entitled 'Whakarewarewa Poraka' containing entries dated 18 August to 13 September 1893, with some genealogies. (92pp.)

2. Volume in Makereti's handwriting entitled 'Whakarewarewa Poraka' containing entries dated 10 September 1893 to 11 June 1894. It also includes two karakia (incantations), some genealogies, a blank application form for the investigation of title, and a hand drawn map of 8500 acres around Tutakamoana. (310pp.)

3. Volume entitled 'Makereti, Maori genealogies'. (31pp.)

Rotorua visitors book, 1902 - 1903 (File Box 8)

At the time the book was compiled, Makereti was the celebrated guide to the springs and geysers of Whakarewarewa. The visitors were nearly all from New Zealand, Australia and Britain, but a few were from the United States, Canada and Europe. The last entry in the book is inscribed to 'Maggie' (Makereti).

Volume of ephemera, letters and cuttings, 1900 - 1909 (File Box 8)

The volume contains newspaper cuttings on a wide range of subjects, particularly Maggie Papakura (Makereti), her visit to Australia in 1905, Rotorua and Wkakarewarewa, theatrical performances and cricket. There are references to famous visitors to Roturua, such as Nellie Melba and Jan Paderewski. In addition, there are letters written to Makereti, verse, drawings, menus, programs and photographs.

Volume of newspaper cuttings, post cards and photographs, 1910 (File Box 9)

Volume of newspaper cuttings, post cards and photographs, 1910.

The volume mostly relates to the visit of Makareti and Maori entertainers to Australia in 1910 and the Maori village at Clontarf in Sydney. There are numerous photographs of Maggie Papakura (Makereti) in various settings.

Volume of newspaper cuttings and ephemera, 1900 - 1908 (File Box 9)

The volume contains cuttings on a range of subjects, particularly Maggie Papakura (Makereti), Rotorua and Whakarewarewa, visitors to Rotorua, Maori culture and customs, and rugby union in New Zealand. As well as cuttings, there are letters, telegrams, invitations, postcards and photographs. The correspondents include Thomas Cheeseman of the Auckland Institute and Museum and Lady Rawson, the wife of the governor of New South Wales.

Album of cuttings and photographs relating to 1911 Festival of Empire and subsequent career of 'Princess Iwa', 1910 - 1911 (File Box 10)

In 1910-11 Maggie Papakura (Makereti) led a party of about 50 Maori of the Te Arawa tribe to London where they assembled a Maori village and theatre at the Coronation Exhibition at White City. The newspaper cuttings deal with the Exhibition generally and in particular the Maori performers. They include a number of interviews with Makereti. There are also cuttings about the Maori rugby players who also visited England in 1911. The later cuttings, programs and photographs relate to the singing career of Princess Iwa (Evaline Skerrett). She remained in England when the tour ended and achieved fame as one of the finest contraltos of her time.

Cutting concerning Princess Iwa, The Sketch, 17 November 1918 (File Box 10)

The Sketch, 17 Dec. 1919, with a note and photographs of Princess Iwa appearing at the London Palladium. (pp. 425-27)

Chinneck, Gardner and Corset Ltd. Inventory and valuation of Oddington Grange, Islip, Oxfordshire, the property of W.F. Dennan. (typescript, 40pp.)

Oddington Grange was the home of Richard Staples-Brown, who was married to Makereti from 1912 to 1924. William Dennan was Makereti's only child.