Tainui canoe

Tainui canoe

In Māori oral tradition there are many stories of the founding canoes. One of these was the Tainui canoe which first landed in the Bay of Plenty before journeying to the Waitematā Harbour. There it was dragged across the 200-metre portage to the Manukau Harbour. This hauling chant is said to have been sung by the crew of the Tainui as they pulled it across the portage. From the Manukau Harbour the Tainui went south to Kāwhia Harbour where it was interred. The upright stones in the foreground and middle distance mark its bow and stern. The sound recording is of a performance by members of the Te Whānau-ā-Apanui tribe led by Rapata Kīngi in 1943.

Sound file from Sound Archives / Ngā Taonga Kōrero