Page 417 - Puhipi

Tangonge Pare: a Symbol of Te Rarawa

Closely associated with the mana atua of Te Rarawa, the design is highly significant,
known as the Kaitaia or Tangonge Lintel. This ancient carving was found in 1920 by
Te Rarawa elder, Walter Tepania, at the now drained Lake Tangonge, near Kaitaia.

The angular forms, chevrons, decorative notching and the character of the central
figure all suggest that it is an early development of Maori art from older Polynesian
models. These features are also seen on early pendants. The Kaitaia carving is carved
from totara and may date from the 14th-16th century. The design structure, with its
central figure and outward facing manaia motifs at each end is like later pare or door
lintels.

In the Kaitaia carving, both sides are fully carved which suggests it may have stood
over a gateway. It is the oldest extant carving to be found in Aotearoa and has been
housed at the Auckland War Memorial Museum since the 1940’s.

It is a symbol of mana atua and of antiquity in Aotearoa. To the people of Te Rarawa
it also represents endurance, beauty and utility. It remains an important source of
pride and mana for Te Rarawa and again contributes to that which is uniquely a part
of Te Rarawa identity.

Tangonge is artistically very simple and unassuming but it acquires it’s mana from
those elements that are unseen and come from the distant past.

Tangonge has been adopted by Te Rünanga o Te Rarawa as it’s logo and it has come
to personify and symbolise the iwi. Three copies of Tangonge exist and all reside
within the rohe of Te Rarawa.