Kekeno Terewhata Inaka
$300.00
Kekeno / Fur Seal stylised Aurei. Terewhata Inaka sourced by Ngati Mahaki ki Makaawhio.
This piece is inspired by historic Taoka Tuturu of Murihiku, mahinga kai practice and connection to whenua. For Te Whanau Paahi of Foveaux Strait the Kekeno was the most significant of the seasonal mahinga kai, hunted from midsummer through to late autumn and preserved in Poha, the Kekeno provided a vital source of kai through the harsh southern winter. This connection with the Kekeno provoked a violent clash between Southern Maori and early Europeans known as the Sealers and Whalers War, as commercial sealing crews decimated the colonies of the southern coasts for the fur trade.
Carved by Emry Kereru.