Anthropomorphic pendant ‘hei-tiki’

Description

greenstone (nephrite) / “pounamu” (“New Zealand jade”), red sealing wax, plant fibre, plant fibre,

The pendants are regarded as “taonga tuku iho”, or revered heirlooms that are passed down from one generation to another. They connect wearers to their “tupuna”, or venerated ancestors.

Their significance is still unclear today. Scholars have offered a number of theories, including that “hei-tiki” depict “hineteiwaiwa”, an ancestress associated with fertility, or they represent “tiki”, the first human.