Learning Ancient
p. 46 · Read in the full issue
Maori Craft
Two Rarotongans Train as Carvers at Rotorua, N.Z.
TWO young Rarotongans, members of the Cook Islands party which visited New Zealand for the Waitangi celebra tions last year, are making fine progress at the Maori Crafts School at Rotorua, New Zealand. Mr. Hamilton, the director, speaks of their work in the highest terms.
They will remain at Rotorua until they become proficient carvers, and will then return to the Cook Group. The object of their tuition is to enable them to be com petent enough to erect and carve a meet ing house at Rarotonga for Makea-nui Ariki Tinirau. As leader of the Cook Islands party to New Zealand, Makea Tinirau visited several t chare whakairo (carved meeting houses) in different parts of the Dominion, and was much impressed with their design.
The proposed house at Rarotonga will be on the lines of the whare whakairo at Aotearoa and will embody many of the native Rarotongan designs.
Mr. Eric Ramsden, a well-known Syd ney writer on Polynesian topics, returned to Australia recently after a visit to Tahiti, where he gathered much interest ing literary material. Messrs. Putnam and Sons, London publishers, have re quested Mr. Ramsden to give them an option over his forthcoming book on French Oceania.