**Available now**
Te Ata o Tū The Shadow of Tūmatauenga: The New Zealand Wars Collections of Te Papa
ACCESSIBLE, IMPORTANT GUIDE TO THE TAONGA RELATING TO THE NEW ZEALAND WARS HELD BY TE PAPA
By Matiu Baker, Katie Cooper, Michael Fitzgerald and Rebecca Rice
Publication date: March 2024
NZ RRP (incl. GST): $70
Extent: 480 pages
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 978-0-9941460-8-3
The wars of 1845–72 were described by James Belich as ‘bitter and bloody struggles, as important to New Zealand as were the Civil Wars to England and the United States’. The conflict’s themes of land and sovereignty continue to resonate today.
This richly illustrated book, developed in partnership with iwi, delves into Te Papa’s Mātauranga Māori, History and Art collections to explore taonga and artefacts intimately connected with the key events and players associated with the New Zealand Wars, sparking conversation and debate and shedding new light on our troubled colonial past.
Contributing essays from Basil Keane, Arini Loader, Danny Keenan, Jade Kake, Mike Ross, Paul Meredith, Monty Soutar, Puawai Cairns and Ria Hall.
Look inside Te Ata o Tū The Shadow of Tūmatuenga (link is external)
About the authors
Matiu Baker (Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Whakaue) is Curator Mātauranga Māori at Te Papa and has a broad interest in the many areas of Mātauranga Māori. His recent research has included work on Māori photographs and photography of Māori in nineteenth-century New Zealand.
Katie Cooper is Curator New Zealand Histories and Cultures at Te Papa. Her research focus is the social and material history of nineteenth-century New Zealand. She has been working to highlight women’s histories in Te Papa’s collections and develop collections that represent the everyday lives of New Zealanders. She is also engaged in ongoing research into the social history of rural New Zealand.
Michael Fitzgerald is a Te Papa Research Associate. He was a Curator of History at Te Papa and its predecessors (the Dominion and National Museums) from 1971 until his retirement in 2016. In his earlier years at the Museum, Michael was the sole-charge Curator of Colonial History, responsible for the Museum’s diverse collections of historical artefacts, including many objects and documents relating to the histories and technologies of the New Zealand Wars. Researching these artefacts and the stories behind them has long been and continues to be a topic of special interest to him.
Rebecca Rice is Curator Historical New Zealand Art at Te Papa. She specialises in the field of colonial New Zealand art, with a particular interest in the histories of collecting, exhibition, and display. Her current research focuses on the visual culture of the New Zealand Wars, and the impact of impressionism on New Zealand artists at home and abroad.