Maori Gable Ornament, New Zealand

Collected by John Jacobs, a spa owner, in the late 19th century in Rotorua, New Zealand
Brought to Australia when he returned to Sydney, circa 1892
By descent from the above
Sotheby's, Sydney, November 9, 1997, lot 581
Wayne Heathcote, London, acquired at the above auction
Sotheby's, New York, May 17, 2002, lot 366, consigned by the above
Private Collection, New York, acquired at the above auction
Sotheby's, New York, May 9, 2006, lot 4, consigned by the above
Fred Boschan, Philadelphia, acquired at the above auction

Good condition for an object of this type and age. Broken through the legs and glued. Surface is weathered and worn with stable surface age cracks throughout. Marks, nicks, scratches, abrasions, small chips and losses consistent with age. Two screw sockets from a previous mounting. Two old nails at the top corners of the head.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The present figure is a gable peak ornament (tekoteko) that once adorned an ornately decorated Maori assembly hall (whare whakairo), food storehouse (pataka) or chief's dwelling. Kjellgren (2007: 310-311) notes: "Ancestors, ortupuna, play a central role in Maori art and culture.  They include all forbears, from the founding ancestors who arrived in canoes from eastern Polynesia and gave rise to the different Maori groups, or iwi, that exist today to individuals who were born and died within living memory.  Tupuna of both sexes are honored and revered throughout Maori society.  The great majority of human images, or tiki, in Maori art depict ancestors in myriad manifestations on works ranging from personal ornaments to monumental sculpture.  Some of the finest ancestor images were, and are, created as architectural ornaments."

As Mack (1982: 100) notes: "Most of these complexly carved buildings have long since disappeared [...] individual carved elements have been preserved to afford us a tantalizing hint of lost grandeur.  Such structures were public buildings, and their quality reflected on not only the chiefs who commissioned them, but on the entire community.  As a result, enormous amounts of energy and skill, as well as religious ritual, went into their construction."

According to David Simmons (personal communication, March 2015), the present work is in the style of the Maori Ngati Porou iwi (cultural group) of the East Coast of the North Island of New Zealand.  A related stockade figure is in the collection of the National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen (Barrow 1969: 113, fig. 150), and according to Barrow is in the style of the Bay of Plenty region. The Copenhagen figure was collected in the town of Te Awamutu before 1896, according to museum records, and exhibits weathering to the surface as well as broad stocky features, similar to the present figure.  The present figure was reportedly collected by John Jacobs in the late 19th century in the town of Rotorua, which is situated between Te Awamutu and the east coast of the North Island.