Potae Kiwi

Kei te mihia te tohunga raranga a Emily Schuster, ko ia tētahi o ngā tohunga matua nā rātou i whakarauora ngā tikanga, i tiaki ngā rawa e waiwai ana ki tēnei momo toi. Nāna tēnei pōtae i hanga mō tētahi rangatira nō Te Arawa, a Te Mauriora Rangituhaha Kingi MNZM. I te tau 1990, ko Mauriora Kingi te kaitātaki tāne o te kapa haka o Tūhourangi-Ngāti Wāhiao. Nā Mauriora i tono a Emily ki te hanga i tētahi pōtae e rite ana ki tō Mita Taupopoki, he tipuna rangatira rongonui nō Te Whakarewarewa. He maha ngā pikitia mō Taupopoki e mau pōtae ana, he pōtae e whakarākeihia ana ki ngā momo huruhuru rerekē. Ko tā Schuster mahi he pōtae e whakanikohia ana ki ngā huruhuru kiwi e toro whakarunga ai hei whakahuahua i te pōtae āhua karauna o Taupopoki. Kua meatia ki te taha o te *Crown Grab Bag*, 2006 a Marueen Lander, nā reira kitea ai ngā momo pōtae e rua e whakaatu ai i ngā mana ahurea, i ngā rangatiratanga e rua.

Master weaver Emily Schuster is recognised for the integral role she played in the revitalisation of Māori weaving traditions and conservation of materials crucial to this art form. This pōtae (hat) was made especially for the late Te Arawa historian and leader, Te Mauriora Rangituhaha Kingi MNZM. In 1990, Kingi was appointed the kaitake tāne (male leader of kapa haka/performance group) of the Tūhourangi-Ngāti Wahiao group. For his performance, Kingi asked Schuster to create a pōtae based on one belonging to Mita Taupopoki, a renowned chief of Whakarewarewa. Taupopoki was frequently documented wearing a pōtae adorned with different types of huruhuru (feathers). Schuster’s pōtae is made of kiwi feathers which are arranged to curve upwards and resemble Taupopoki’s elaborate crown-like hat. With its positioning next to Maureen Lander’s *Crown Grab Bag*, 2006 we are shown two different headdresses that represent two types of cultural authority and ideas of sovereignty.

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