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paua - tangaroa's gift
Paua shell has been used by the M�ori, as decoration and in religious ceremony ever since they first came to Aotearoa; paua is a M�ori word.
The the eyes of M�ori carvings are inlaid with paua shell. In M�ori mythology, the paua eyes are known as mata-a-ruru -- meaning "the-eyes-of-the-owl" -- and are identified as being all seeing and all wise.
Moas were giant flightless birds of New Zealand. The largest of the species, the Giant Moa, reaching nearly ten feet in height and about 550 pounds. The moa became extinct around 1500 AD due to hunting and land clearance after humans arrived in New Zealand.
According to Maori legend, Kupe , a M�ori chief, was the first M�ori to arrive in New Zealand. He sailed from Hawaiki in about 950 AD. However, it wasn't until about 1350 that great fleets of M�ori arrived and settled.
The M�ori word for New Zealand, Aotearoa, means "land of the long white cloud." Given New Zealand's frequently damp cloudy weather, some New Zealanders say Aotearoa actually means "land of the long white shroud."
M�ori farmers used paua shells with their iridescent blue, green and pink colors in their gardens, placed flank wise, to help nurture seedlings.
Tangaroa is one of the children of Ranginui -- the Sky Father and Papatuanuku -- the Earth Mother.
Tane -- Tangaroa's older brother -- is the god of trees and light. He created the dawn, as well as the Tui , a bird that was a staple food of the Polynesians. Tani also created Tiki , the first man.
It was Dutch explorer Abel Tasman (1642), who thought Aotearoa looked like a place in the Netherlands called 'Zeeland' -- so he named it 'New Zealand.'
m�ori magic

maori tiki carving
photo art maori

Serving to intensify the generally frightening expressions of the M�ori gods, M�ori carvers use paua for inlay work in their mystical carvings of both wood and nephrite.
Little is shared with the outside world about the true significance of specific designs, but there are certain common elements: the figures are usually depicted in side profile -- part in the spiritual world, part in this world.

maori pendant; whale bone with pa�a inlay
photo: beyars

In the mid-fourteenth century, when the M�oris with their double-hulled canoes made their landfall in Aotearoa (today's New Zealand), no mammals lived on the geologically young island. With the exception of the giant native birds -- flightless moas -- the ocean was the settlers' major source of food.
Compared to fishing and whaling, it was relatively simple to wade through the shallow waters during ebb tide and to collect the sea snails from the ground.
Found in great numbers all along the coastline, the pa�a -- with its appetizing and large yield of flesh -- was very welcome staple fare for the M�ori.
tangaroa's gift
Long ago, a sea creature named Paua had no shell. One day, Tangaroa, god of the sea, noticed the difficulties this created for Paua and decided to create a special covering for him.

tangaroa, god of the sea

Tangaroa said, "I will take from my domain the coolest blues of the ocean and ask of my brother Tane (god of the forest) his freshest greens. From the dawn you shall have a tinge of violet, from the sunset a blush of pink, and overall there will be a shimmer of mother of pearl."

With this, Tangaroa fashioned for Paua a wonderful coat that sparkled and dazzled with its beauty. But, alas, it was fragile and was soon broken by sea creatures envious of Paua's new appearance.

Seeing this, Tangaroa strengthened the shell with many more layers. Finally he added a camouflage coat to enable Paua to blend in with the drab grays and browns of the rocks.

Then, Tangaroa charged Paua with the life-long task of adding layer upon delicate layer to his shell home, each a different hue and blend. So it was that Paua got his shell.

To this day, he hugs the secret of his inner beauty to himself and only at the end of his life, when his empty shell washes ashore, is his artistry revealed.