The historic archive includes important images of key Māori figures including Dame Whina Cooper, Eva Rickard, artists such as Rangimarie Hetet, entertainers Billy T James, Dalvanius Prime, Howard Morrison, Rawiri Paratene and Tina Cross, activist Titewhai Harawira, Dun Mihaka and Tame Iti, writers Patricia Grace, Michael King, Hone Tuwhare and Whiti Ihimara, and politicians such as Koro Wetere, It also features official ceremonies and images of the Māori royal family.
Sophie Coupland — a New Zealand art valuer who assessed and categorised the entire collection of photographs of Māori — said the images also featured key details on the subject and events on the reverse side.
“The Fairfax Archive Collection of Tangata Whenua is an important taonga as a record of Māori history and the social history of New Zealand,” she said.
“The value of these images is enhanced as they often appear with the original newspaper article, which gives them greater historical context and meaning.
“The collection presents a comprehensive documentary of Māori culture and society, largely through the second half of the 20th century, but with some early 20th-century material included,” she said.
In addition to important events within Māori history such as the Bastion Point protest, political conflict at Waitangi and the 1992 fisheries referendum, there is also a comprehensive array of images showing the lives and issues of everyday people, often with these individuals named and documented.
“This includes images of Māori social housing, issues relating to Māori health, Māori wardens, the Māori Battalion, kōhanga reo, artists, weavers, events such as tangihanga and Te Māori exhibition, the opening and restoration of marae buildings, waka carving and racing events, haka and poi demonstrations and food gathering and preparation,” Ms Coupland said.
The newspaper cuttings on the verso provide an overview of how Māori affairs were reported on by mainstream media.
“Language use is a sensitive barometer of social and cultural development and these images, together with the articles and texts associated, provide valuable insights into how Māori have been viewed and presented, reflecting the prevailing attitudes of writers and editors.”
Daniel Miller, of Duncan Miller Gallery, said the archive was significant as it is one of the largest photographic collections that existed on New Zealand history — covering the past 183 years.
While valued at $340,000, the archive was bought for significantly less.
“The strongest images within the collection have both aesthetic appeal and convey something crucial and essential of Māori social history; images which encapsulate a pivotal event or capture a defining mood,” he said.
The images of tangata whenua represent less than 1 percent of the hundreds of thousands of irreplaceable photographs that were almost destroyed.
While past archive storage exposed some prints to humidity, the collection has been stored in a temperature-controlled facility under its new ownership.
“There are hundreds of thousands of images covering other aspects of New Zealand life and pivotal moments in the nation’s history,” Mr Miller said. “Some examples of the thousands of other collections include pre-World War 2 military training camps for high school students, the construction and eventual dismantling of Auckland’s electric tramway system between 1900 and 1982, life in the Chatham Islands between 1910 and 1991, and portraits of pre-eminent New Zealand architects.”
They also have collections of sporting images, including well-known rugby, cricket and tennis players.
“We are looking to make these available for purchase by private citizens, as well as institutions through the online auction platform TheFairfaxArchives.co.nz this month.”
Miller said all of the vintage images were captured by in-house and freelance photographers at the Dominion Post, Manawatu Standard, The Press, Southland Times, Sunday Star Times, Taranaki Daily News, Timaru Herald, and Waikato Times before publication in these titles.
