Haunting welcome brings ancestors home at last

The haunting calls of kuia echoed through Te Papa museum last night to mark the return of long-lost Maori ancestral remains.

It was through their tears and laments that the one-time grotesque curiosities were restored to the status of revered ancestors.

Wanganui kuia Kura Simon said the powhiri last night for the 12 toi moko (preserved tattooed heads) and six skeletal parts, returned from museums in Britain and the Netherlands, was a time of sadness and joy.

"This is very emotional. It is the chance to return our tupuna to their land."

The conch-like putatara summoned the procession that surrounded six plain crates draped in korowai (traditional cloaks) and kawakawa leaves.

The ceremony highlights changing attitudes to the display of human remains in international institutions.

Speaking in Maori, Te Papa resident kaumatua Te Kanui Kapa welcomed back the people from Te Ao Kohatu (the old world). He said that whatever their destination from here, they could now rest in peace back in their ukaipo (birthplace)

For 18th and 19th century collectors the preserved tattoooed heads and body parts, including skulls and thigh bones, were treasured additions to macabre collections.

For others they allowed "scientific study" to prove European superiority.

But for Maori they are tupuna (ancestors) who must be allowed to rest in peace.

Te Papa spokesman Te Tahu White said the museum had spent the past five years seeking the return of remains.

In July, the British Government announced details of the Human Tissue Act, which allows museums to return remains "which are reasonably believed to be under 1000 years in age".

Mr White said toi moko were popular with collectors from 1770 until the practice was outlawed in 1880.

However, collecting bones of indigenous peoples continued until the early 20th century.

"They were used for scientific study to confirm Darwinist theories, with cranial studies trying to find evidence of civilised versus the uncivilised."

The Australian Government has similar repatriation projects.

Recently the Swedish Government commissioned an audit of all its institutions housing human remains, deeming the practice barbaric, Mr White said.

Fourteen institutions from Argentina, Hawaii and Australia have already returned Maori remains.

Te Papa has returned remains to six iwi, including Northland's Te Kuri, Whanganui iwi and the South Island's Ngai Tahu.

"It is a sign that the world is changing," said Mr White. "We don't have to maintain the lack of ethical standards that were there 150 to 200 years ago."

He said last night's ceremony was designed to acknowledge the sanctity of people. "I have no doubt they [Maori] will have connections. All of us in the room will treat them as our whanau, our tupuna, and will know somewhere along our whakapapa [genealogy] connects.

"Ask yourself this: How would you feel if it was your grandmother or grandfather three times removed? Of their head being on display or their body parts being probed, without being given the decency of a burial, or offering family the opportunity to grieve.

"That is not right, and this is the respect all of our ancestors deserve."

The remains will be subject to tests and investigations, including DNA and chromosomal tracking as well as tracing the history of their movements - where enough information is available - in an attempt to return them to tribal groups.