Articles on Canterbury silcrete sources, mōkihi (raupō canoes), the role of ikawai (freshwater fish) in the South Island Māori economy, a change in the classification of small native spiders, nineteenth-century mourning jewellery that used human hair, and an Australian hackled orb weaver spider now found in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Records of the Canterbury Museum Volume 34 2020
Records of the Canterbury Museum Volume 34 2020
Tue, 10 Nov 2020
Articles
The Gray Hills silcrete source, inland South Canterbury
Phillip R Moore, Michael Trotter and Kyle Davis
ABSTRACT: The Grays Hills quarry, in the Mackenzie Basin, appears to have been one of the more significant sources of silcrete (or orthoquartzite) utilised by South Island Māori for the manufacture of cutting implements. This paper provides a brief description of the quarry, and a nearby source site, along with an account of previous work, visual attributes of the silcrete and some of the artefacts recovered from the area.
A significant silcrete source near Oxford, North Canterbury
Phillip R Moore and Kyle Davis
ABSTRACT: An isolated occurrence of silcrete at Miro Downs, near Oxford, North Canterbury, was utilised by early Māori settlers to manufacture cutting implements. New information on this important stone source, which has been largely overlooked in recent years, is presented, including a description of two additional archaeological sites and some of the artefacts previously collected from the area.
Hugh McCully's 'mogie'
Rosanna McCully McEvedy, Marion Seymour and Anthea McCully
ABSTRACT: Mōkihi (raupō canoes) were traditional Māori water craft used on navigable South Island rivers, lakes and lagoons by Māori and early European explorers, but their use died out in the late nineteenth century once the basic road-and-bridge network was established. The skills to make them had largely fallen into disuse by 1950 and because they were made of biodegradable raupō (bullrush) and harakeke (flax), nineteenth century mōkihi had rotted away. In 1950, our grandfather Hugh Simms McCully commenced making a mōkihi (E151.209) and was joined by Pita Paipeta (Peter Piper) in this endeavour. A separate model cross-section (E151.210) was made for people to study closely. Both objects were donated to Canterbury Museum in January 1951 to celebrate the Centennial of Canterbury. This is the story of the construction of the mōkihi now in Canterbury Museum and of its accompanying model.
A review of the role of diadromous ikawai (freshwater fish) in the Māori economy and culture in Te Wai Pounamu (South Island), Aotearoa New Zealand
Roger Fyfe and Julia Bradshaw
ABSTRACT: Canterbury Museum holds two rare examples of kupenga (nets) used to catch diadromous freshwater fish in Te Wai Pounamu (South Island). This paper places the kupenga in context and gives details of the eight species of freshwater fish harvested (five species in the family Galaxiidae (Galaxias maculatus, G. brevipinnis, G. fasciatus, G. argenteus and G. postvectis), the extinct upokororo (grayling, Prototroctes oxyrhynchus) and two types of paraki (smelt, Retropinna retropinna, Stokellia anisodon)). A review of ethnohistorical accounts highlights the significance of the fishery as a seasonal food source and demonstrates that traditional fishing technology is the source of techniques for modern day whitebaiting.
Theridion pumilio (Theridiidae) and Drapetisca australis (Linyphiidae) are transferred to Diploplecta Millidge, 1988 (Araneae: Linyphiidae, Linyphiinae)
Brian M Fitzgerald and Phil J Sirvid
ABSTRACT: An examination of the type specimens of Theridion pumilio Urquhart, 1886 (Theridiidae) and the description of Drapetisca australis Forster, 1955 (Linyphiidae) showed that, on the basis of epigynal characters, the two species should be transferred to Diploplecta Millidge, 1988.
Any relic of the dead is precious: Nineteenth-century memorial jewellery at Canterbury Museum
Lyndon Fraser and Julia Bradshaw
ABSTRACT: Canterbury Museum houses a small but varied collection of memorial jewellery from the nineteenth century that provides a window into European relationships and deathways during the period. This article places these objects in the context of far-reaching changes that led to a new social order of the dead. The first section locates our work within historical writing on death, grief and mourning in the late Georgian and Victorian eras. In the second, we attempt to make sense of the material evidence and offer a close analysis of the various mementos. We argue that these keepsakes played a crucial consolatory role in mourning practices at the time and assisted the bereaved to come to terms with their loss.
A redescription of Philoponella congregabilis, an Australian hackled orb weaver spider (Uloboridae) now found in Christchurch, New Zealand
Cor J Vink and Kate M Curtis
ABSTRACT: Philoponella congregabilis (Rainbow, 1916), an Australian spider in the family Uloboridae, has recently established in Christchurch, New Zealand. The species is redescribed. It builds reduced, horizontal or sloping orb webs in low vegetation, on fences, under eaves and in outbuildings. The webs of different individuals can be interconnected. Philoponella congregabilis is found in eastern and southeastern Australia and its current New Zealand distribution is limited to the southern
suburbs of Christchurch.
Records of the Canterbury Museum Volume 34 2020
The full volume of Records of the Canterbury Museum 34.