Manu Moriori: Human and Bird Carvings on Live Kopi Trees on the Chatham Islands

Tree carvings made by Moriori long ago, remain alive today on Rekohu on only about 150 living trees. At the present rate of decline, all living carved trees could well be dead within the next generation. Fortunately a substantial body of sketches and photographs of the motifs carved by Moriori long ago is available in Dunedin. The main motifs are squatting human 'hocker' figures, which Moriori called 'manu' or 'birds'. Before traditional Moriori society was overwhelmed in 1835, Moriori talked to these carvings as an interface through which to speak to their dead ancestors and to local gods and spirits that were not in this world.