Sale of hei-tiki ‘ongoing colonisation’
A hei-tiki pendant has sold at an auction in Paris for more than $50,000 — a process a Ma¯ori art historian says furthers the “disconnection” of indigenous people from their culture.
The Ma¯ ori artefact sold on June 29 for €30,000 at a Christie’s auction, which had raised controversy for listing allegedly stolen artefacts of Nigerian origin. The taonga was part of the James and Marilynn Alsdorf Collection, included in the Arts of Africa, Oceania and North America sale.
University of Auckland Associate
Professor Ngarino Ellis, who specialises in Ma¯ori art history, said hei-tiki pendants were well-known internationally, and sought after at such auctions for “tribal collections”.
“They are recognisably old and authentic, and a symbol of Ma¯ori culture, so it is something all tribal art collectors want,” said Ellis, of Nga¯ puhi and Nga¯ti Porou. “But for Ma¯ori, the hei-tiki is one of our most significant treasures, taonga.”
It was “very painful” to see them sold for exorbitant sums on the other side of the world, knowing Ma¯ori could never afford to buy them all back, Ellis said. “It is ongoing colonisation, when it is sold like this merely as an object to go into a private collection, a further symbol of disconnection from our culture.”
The Ministry for Culture and Heritage monitors auctions within New Zealand to ensure that taonga tu¯ turu are traded in accordance with the Protected Objects Act 1975.
A spokeswoman said because the hei-tiki was previously sold in London in 1968 it appeared to fall out of bounds of the legislation.
Christie’s has been approached for comment. — NZ Herald