464 Transactions. 



Fig. 12, Mokoia, the island in Lake Rotorua. This is shown in the 

 lower third, standing in Lake Rotorua. A similar figure can be 

 produced in cat's cradle. The rest of the design is supposed to 

 represent Matariki (the Pleiades). 

 (4.) Designs in which the names are purely fanciful. 



Fig. 13, " The coil of the string of the kite of Whakatau, who flew 

 his kite from a small hill at the time that Hine-te-iwaiwa went 

 to search for Whakatau to avenge the death of Tuhuruhuru. 

 The death was avenged. The motive of the name is seen in 

 the middle third of the design." Whakatau-potoki was one of 

 the great heroes of the race when they were in Polynesia. He 

 is famous in song, story, and incantation. 



Fig. 14 : " Aka matua (the firm root) is the name of this design. 

 It is the firm root by which Tawhaki climbed upwards to the 

 heavens to get his daughter Arahuta, who was born of his 

 heavenly wife." 



Another design, with very slight modification, is described as 

 follows : " Aka taepa (the loose root), is the name of this design. 

 This is the way by which Karihi, younger brother of Tawhaki, 

 attempted to climb to the heavens and nearly lost his life." 

 The story of the two brothers is told in detail in Grey's Poly- 

 nesian Mythology. 

 An excellent picture of post-European designs, taken from Porourangi, 

 on the East Coast, is shown in Hamilton's Maori Art, part 2, plate xiii, 

 fig. 2. 



Decorative Transformation. 



The decorative transformation of artificial and natural objects to wood, 

 stone, and other material has led to a complete classification of patterns 

 and designs according to what the craftsman tried to express. Although 

 I hold that in the original Maori designs the patterns came first and the 

 names after, it may be interesting to classify our panels according to the 

 accepted system. 



(1.) Skeuomorphs. 



These have been defined as forms of ornament demonstrably due to 

 structure. The markings on the handles of Tongan clubs have been 

 shown to represent bindings of sinnet. Under this heading, the cross- 

 stitch, no matter what the subsequent pattern developed, and the over- 

 lapping wrapped stitch are undoubtedly skeuomorphs. They were bindings 

 originally to fasten the rods to the stakes and keep them in position. 

 Even the single stitch in the simple chevron patterns comes under this 

 heading. As they were named after various things, however, they will be 

 classified accordingly. 



(2). Physicomorphs. 



Under this heading comes any representation of an object or operation 

 in the physical world. Here we get the first three patterns done with 

 the cross-stitch : Purapura whetu (star-seeds) ; Mangoroa (the Milky Way) 

 (fig. 1, Plate LXVI) ; tuturu (leaking water) (fig. 3, Plate LXVI). 



(3.) Biomorphs. 



Biomorphs are divided into — 



(a.) Zoomorphs — representations from the animal kingdom. The only 

 example in this group that has the whole figure represented was the patiki 



