Maori tu mask

Description

Maori tu mask – mask with paua eyes, flat back.

The Maori tu mask depicts tumatauenga, the God of war and man. Guardian. Protection.

Type of wood: Our carvers use native NZ wood (rimu, matai, totara or swamp kauri). We have featured Jason and Grant’s work for many years, probably close to 20 years. We love their authentic Maori artworks!

• Size tu mask: 275mm x 140mm (10.83″ x 5.51″)

Maori mythology

In Māori mythology, Tū or Tūmatauenga (Māori: ‘Tū of the angry face’) is the god of war, hunting, food cultivation, fishing and cooking. All war-parties were dedicated to him. And he was treated with the greatest respect and awe. He is usually a son of the primordial parent, sky and earth (Rangi and Papa). Of all the brothers, Tūmatauenga alone fought Tāwhirimātea to a standstill and forced him to withdraw.

In a Te Arawa version, Tūmatauenga advises his brothers to kill their parents Rangi and Papa in order to allow light and space into the world, but the kinder proposal of Tāne is accepted and instead the primordial pair are forced apart. Tūmatauenga thinks about the actions of Tāne in separating their parents, and makes snares to catch the birds, the children of Tāne, who can no longer fly free.

He then makes nets, and traps the children of Tangaroa. He makes holes to dig the ground, capturing his brothers Rongo and Haumia-tiketike, heaping them into baskets to be eaten.

The only brother that Tūmatauenga cannot subdue completely is Tāwhirimātea, whose storms and hurricanes attack humankind to this day because of his indignation at the actions of his brothers.

Source: Wikipedia / Te Arawa

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