Napoleon - An Intimate Portrait Napoleon - An Intimate Portrait



On eBay Now...

Rare Antique MĀORI Hand Carved Hardwood Feeding Funnel New Zealand Paua Bird For Sale


Rare Antique MĀORI Hand Carved Hardwood Feeding Funnel New Zealand Paua Bird
When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.


Buy Now

Rare Antique MĀORI Hand Carved Hardwood Feeding Funnel New Zealand Paua Bird:
$1999.99

The carved oval bowl decorated with indigenous geometric design above a bird mosaic with Paua eyes at the peak. Overall 8 x 4 1/4 x 7 1/4 in. Maori are the tangata whenua, the indigenous people, of New Zealand. They discovered New Zealand more than 1,000 years ago from their Polynesian homeland of Hawaiki. The Ta moko is a Maori Tattoo which is a unique expression of cultural heritage and identity. It reflects the individual's whakapapa (ancestry) and personal history. In earlier times it was an important signifier of social rank, knowledge, skill and eligibility to marry. A Moko is the practice of scarring and marking of the skin to reflect the genealogy of the Maori wearer. Moko can be seen as a cultural affirmation. A tattoo is the English version of the Tahitian word “tatu" and is the tradition marking of the skin with ink and needles. According to legend, the tattoos would take days to execute, the feeding funnel provided nourishment. Within Maori culture, these wooden feeding funnels are known as 'Korere.' The funnel is made of wood inset with abalone shell and carved with interlacing ancestral designs. Korere feed high-status individuals such as chiefs when the ability to consume food is restricted. This restriction can be due to activities called 'tabu,' the origin of the word 'taboo'. 'Tabu' is used to describe a powerful or dangerous situation which must be controlled. One example would be during a tattoo ceremony when the chief has his face marked with traditional moko designs; he could be fed through the feeding funnel. This was for practical as well as ritual reasons; tattooing would cause excessive swelling, and water and healing agents could be passed down the funnel. The Korere would limit physical contact between the food and chief when both are considered charged with 'mana' or power, and therefore tabu.


Very good condition


Previous owner told us that his father picked this up while on a business trip to New Zealand sometime in the 1940s. He was an international businessman who traveled all over the world.


UPS shipping only for this special item. Guaranteed delivery



Buy Now

RARE ANTIQUE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN Statue Heavy Stone Goddess Isis Nursing Horus picture

RARE ANTIQUE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN Statue Heavy Stone Goddess Isis Nursing Horus

$148.50



Rare Antique Ancient Egyptian Antique unique Stela King Ramses II Egyptian BC picture

Rare Antique Ancient Egyptian Antique unique Stela King Ramses II Egyptian BC

$140.00



RARE ANTIQUE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN Statue Goddess Isis Head Candlestick 1825-1777 Bc picture

RARE ANTIQUE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN Statue Goddess Isis Head Candlestick 1825-1777 Bc

$122.55



RARE ANTIQUE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN Statue Baboon Isis Protection 1675-1620 Bc picture

RARE ANTIQUE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN Statue Baboon Isis Protection 1675-1620 Bc

$149.00



Beautiful RARE Antique HALLMARK H100 UJEP Pewter Tea/Coffee Pot picture

Beautiful RARE Antique HALLMARK H100 UJEP Pewter Tea/Coffee Pot

$24.00



RARE VINTAGE ANTIQUE GOLD GILT BRASS BRONZE ST. ANNE DE BEAUPRE STATUE 8.25” picture

RARE VINTAGE ANTIQUE GOLD GILT BRASS BRONZE ST. ANNE DE BEAUPRE STATUE 8.25”

$199.99



Rare antique ancient Egyptian Goddess Serket Fertility symbol Egyptian BC picture

Rare antique ancient Egyptian Goddess Serket Fertility symbol Egyptian BC

$129.00



RARE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN ANTIQUE HORUS Protect Ushabti Royal Statue Tomb (BS) picture

RARE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN ANTIQUE HORUS Protect Ushabti Royal Statue Tomb (BS)

$199.00



Images © photo12.com-Pierre-Jean Chalençon
A Traveling Exhibition from Russell Etling Company (c) 2011