Restored carvings reconnect whakapapa, mātauranga and mauri at University of Auckland
More than a decade after being removed due to weather damage, treasured whakairo have returned to the entrance of the James Henare Research Centre at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, restoring a powerful symbol of Māori identity, knowledge and whakapapa.
The carvings were originally created in the early 1990s by renowned tohunga whakairo Dr Pakāriki Harrison alongside his son, Ngāti Porou carver Fred Harrison, who has now led the restoration project more than 30 years later.
The whakairo were officially unveiled again on 19 May during a ceremony marking their return to the Māori research centre, where they first stood when the building opened in 1994.
Fred Harrison says the restoration carried deep personal meaning, reconnecting him with memories of learning alongside his late father as a teenager and continuing a lifelong tradition of whakairo within the whānau.
The original carvings were created using kauri sourced from two ancient trees felled on an East Cape farm, with traditional carving methods used during the initial construction.
This latest restoration blended traditional knowledge with modern techniques, including protective resins and acrylic coatings designed to help preserve the carvings for generations to come.
The restored whakairo include a maihi above the entrance representing layers of whakapapa, a koruru symbolising Tāne as the bearer of knowledge, and carved amo depicting Rua-te-pupuke and Rua-te-kukune — figures representing the gathering and sharing of knowledge.
James Henare Research Centre director Dr Tia Dawes says the carvings play a vital role in affirming the centre’s identity as a Māori research space focused on the wellbeing of Māori communities in Tāmaki Makaurau and Te Tai Tokerau.
The carvings had been removed around 2014 after rot began affecting the timber, leaving the historic building without one of its most visible expressions of Māori identity.
The centre itself is housed in a building originally constructed for British officers in the 1860s before later becoming home to the Māori research centre.
Dawes says the return of the whakairo restores the mauri of the space and signals clearly that the whare is grounded in kaupapa Māori, mātauranga Māori and service to the people.
Fred Harrison says the restoration project became an all-consuming labour of love, driven by both ancestral responsibility and creative vision. He was also joined in the work by his daughter, Aniwa Harrison, continuing the intergenerational transmission of whakairo knowledge within the whānau.
The restored carvings are now expected to remain in place for many decades, continuing to stand as guardians and transmitters of knowledge for future generations passing through the centre.
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