Abstract
Since the arrival of European explorers and settlers in New Zealand, Māori taonga have been fossicked and traded nationally and globally. Various forms of legislation have attempted to restrict this trading to different degrees, with the current legislation only allowing for taonga found before 1976 to be traded. Motivations for historic private collectors often include the belief they were preserving artefacts of a near-extinct ‘race’, conducting pseudo-science archaeology or to gain personal social status or wealth. Iwi believe taonga embody the spirits of the tīpuna who made them. Thus, the taonga needs to be cared for to nurture this essence and pass the associated knowledge on to future generations. Previously, very little research has been conducted to understand practices of current-day private collectors in New Zealand, particularly considering changing social and cultural attitudes. This research uses sales of taonga registered under the Protected Objects Act 1975 and interviews to show that although those with vested external interests in private collections of taonga agree that the practices need to adapt to become more culturally appropriate, the actual practices of private collectors have not significantly changed between 2009 and 2020. Sales of taonga fluctuated over the years and are influenced by external events promoting interest in taonga as collectables. Taonga that are consistently sold the most are those that are the most recognisable to the public and deemed culturally ‘authentic’. A case study of the Waitaha Taoka Stewart Willetts Family Collections demonstrates that although guardians of taonga do not have to carry the traditional whakapapa connection, there are agreed ways taonga should be cared for and stored according to tikanga principles and with appropriate collaboration with iwi. However, it was agreed that in the first instance, the home of taonga is with their marae. Concerns were raised regarding the roles of private collectors and iwi under the current Protected Objects Act 1975, particularly around the
accountability of collectors and the circulation of the information to iwi. These results demonstrate that despite work at the community level to encourage more Māori cultural understanding, this has not yet filtered through to private collectors who are continuing their practices within their isolated world, despite the opposition within the general community, including iwi and museum professionals.