A kauri bust of Māori chief Tamati Tamaiwhakanehua – who signed the Treaty of Waitangi – is going on the auction block in London. 

Labour MP Willie Jackson is calling on Te Papa to intervene to ensure the taonga (treasure) is returned to its rightful owners. 

The kauri gum bust of Ngati Porou Chief Tamati Tamaiwhakanehua (1795-1854), carved out of fossilised resin, has an $24k estimate and is part of a Sworders of London auction next month. 

Tamaiwhakanehua signed the East Coast sheet of the Treaty of Waitangi on June 9, 1840, at Tokomaru Bay. 

Treaty of Waitangi depicted signing. Image/ Alexander Turnbull Library. 

The bust belongs to English antiques dealer Peter Petrou. 

Jackson, who has whakapapa to Ngati Porou and Maniapoto, said far too many New Zealand treasures were in the hands of offshore collectors and museums and made mention of this when he won his 2024 Oxford University debate about British Museums, highlighting the imperialist acquisition of artefacts, especially Māori mokomokai. 

“As a rule these taonga [treasures] should be repatriated,” Jackson told the Herald. 

“Our culture and our taonga have for years been lost and stolen by museums and dealers around the world, with little coming back to our people. 

Willie Jackson was the first Māori person to be invited to the Oxford University to take part in the debate. Photo / Whakaata Maori 

“Hopefully, there was a process that these people were part of and due respect was shown to the whānau and our iwi of Ngati Porou in terms of this sale. 

“International repatriation laws can be so complex and difficult for indigenous people so if Te Papa could help, that would be better for everyone. This kaupapa is very important because those taonga are an incredible part of the history of our people and this country and was one of the reasons why I called for the repatriation of taonga from the British museums in my Oxford speech two years ago. The right process needs to happen.” 

A spokesperson from Te Papa said they did not comment on specific auctions, but hoped the sellers would make contact with the iwi themselves. 

Chief Tamati Tamaiwhakanehua (also known as Tamati Waka Ama Whaakahua Porourangi) was a high-ranking Māori chief of the Ngāti Porou. 

He was a key figure in the early interactions between Māori and Europeans. 

Ngati Porou Maori chief, Tamati Tamaiwhakanehua and his granddaughter Princess Te Rangi Pai, aka Fanny Howie, the writer of the popular New Zealand lullaby 'Hine E Hine'. 

His face is remembered through a series of life-size kauri gum bust carvings in which he is shown wearing a topknot (tini), moko (tattoo), earplugs and stylised mana dress made of him in the 1840s. 

His granddaughter was the singer and composer Fanny Howie (Te Rangi Pai), writer of the popular lullaby Hine E Hine - used as the theme for TVNZ’s Goodnight Kiwi. 

Fanny Rose Howie, known as Princess Te Rangi Pai. Photo / National Library of New Zealand. 

The bust of the Ngati Porou chief comes as Petrou, who has been more than 50 years in the antiques trade, moves to France. 

His Outward Bound auction, to be held at Sworders next month, will see objects chosen over “a lifetime of looking, thinking, feeling … and matchmaking" by Petrou go under the hammer. 

Joseph Los’e joined NZME in 2022 as Kaupapa Māori Editor. Los’e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News newspaper covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and before joining NZME worked for urban Māori organisation Whānau Waipareira.