Rare Maori kite flies after 26 years hanging on a wall
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- Опубліковано 25 жов 2019
- My 1,414th kite video.
The Maori arrived in New Zealand about 800 years ago, and brought with them the kite-building skills that their ancestors had possessed, adapting them to the local environment. It's said that they developed at least 17 types of kite, including large items in the shape of a hybrid bird/man.
The kite shown here is simpler, but still a difficult one to make satisfactorily. Colin McGeorge did a great job with this, and the kite has survived amazingly well considering the materials of which it's made.
Only seven original Maori kites exist in museums, and the art of Maori kite-building is virtually dead. Before this, I had never seen one fly, although I have seen attempted flights. Certainly I know of no video of a Maori kite flying, so this record of Colin's demonstration of his kite may be unique.
Colin built his kite when writing his book “Kites for Kiwis”, which was published in 1987. He flew the kite last in 1993 for a photo to be included in a reprint of the book. Naturally, the book is now out of print, as the demand for kite books is practically non-existent.
Traditionally, Maori kites were flown on lines made of strips of flax leaves twisted or plaited for strength. For reasons of safety and practicality, Colin flew his kite on his normal kiteline. - Спорт
Great to see this kite flying again - well done Colin. As author of the book Te Manu Tukutuku - The Maori Kite, (which shows step by step how to make a manu taratahi) I assure you that many of these kites are still being made and flown throughout New Zealand. I have made dozens of them, many of which were gifted to overseas kiters visiting NZ. One is in the Japanese kite museum in Tokyo. I also made a 4 metre Maori birdman kite which is in Te Papa's collection, the national museum of NZ. My two books on Maori kites are now out of print however a copy is currently available on TradeMe. Bob Maysmor, Kapiti Coast.
Bob, thanks for that information. I answered another message of yours just before, but hadn't seen this one. You've clearly been very active in keeping these kites alive. I'm surprised that the people making kites with the help of your book do not seem to upload photos, or better still video, of their successes in getting them to fly, which to kite-fliers like Colin and me is the most important feature of a kite. If it doesn't fly, it's just an ornament, like a boat that never gets wet. Here in Christchurch there's been no sign of any revival in the building of them that I have seen (certainly not flying), so maybe the word has been slow to spread, although it seems to have hopped over us to reach Dunedin. Colin is aware of your work and mentioned your book in the concluding comments of his book "Kites for Kiwis" in which he gave his own basic instructions for building the kite shown here.
With Matariki celebrations more common now, I would have expected to see flocks of the Maori kites flown, and maybe there have been, unknown to we people living in Christchurch, where it's rare to see people flying any kind of kite, unfortunately.
@@JimNicholls I'd have to admit Jim that I don't recall having had any contact with South Island folk - I can recall messages from people in Rotorua, Whakatane, Gisborne, Kawhia, and Northland and probably others that have slipped my memory. A few were school teachers, quite a few were tertiary students and others were Maori immersing themselves in their culture.
Sorry - I meant to say, most of these people would not see themselves as kite-flyers or part of the kiting fraternity - they see themselves as Maori, exploring their very own cultural heritage. They are quite likely not even aware of kite flying interest groups -only interested in tikanga Maori.
Bob, the few kite-fliers here are not part of any organised group - it's usually just me, a friend who flies quite often, and Colin who comes on most fine Sundays. There is nothing that I know of to stop any Maori person flying whenever and wherever he or she wants, so presumably the makers of these kites are content just to look at them. I do know of non-Maori people in Auckland who have made representations of Maori kites, including the birdman, in modern materials and have flown them and taken part in organised Matariki celebrations.
To say that kite festivals are euro-centric is surely misleading - it indicates only that Maori have not wanted to take part, because I am sure their participation would be welcomed. And the cultural heritage you mention surely included flying the kites, not merely making them to no purpose.
What a rare sight of both kite and kite-maker.
Congratulations Colin for flying again your authentic Maori kite. My imagination ran away with me picturing more than 100 years ago there may have been many of these kites flying on that very beach.
Well done Jim for also making what might be a rare video record of this piece of kite history.
A pity you weren't here this weekend to see it, Carl. If you'd made it here you would have been invited to take part in the big event (I filmed it yesterday). There was a lot more flying yesterday, too, but the weather wasn't great today so I gave it a miss.
That is absolutely amazing and it flew so well after all these years with no decay in materials. So very neat. Thank you Colin for being willing to share it with us and to you Jim for recording it. Hopefully one day some young lad or lady from the area will find this video on the internet and be inspired to build a kite like their ancestors. Such a wonderful piece of kite history and a wonderfully made replica.
It would be good if it inspired some younger kite-builders, Mark. It's crazy that the only video I know of that shows a Maori kite flying (this one) shows an item made and flown by the descendant of Scottish immigrants!
I am somewhat _amazed_ it is in such good condition.
Off the top of my head, I would guess the materials it is made from would not survive as they have for this long.
Good on 'ya, Colin!! 👍👍
What a beautiful kite. And the construction! How many modern kites fall apart after just a couple of years of flying? Thanks for bringing this back to the sky. Thank you Colin for making and preserving this.
He certainly did a great job. It's a little odd that no-one else in New Zealand seems ever to have made and flown one of these kites in recent times.
Wonderfull Jim and Colin.
Thank you both for sharing!
Glad you liked it!
Thank you for making and sharing this wonderful video. I love history and learning about incredible things such as this.
It was certainly interesting for me, too, John.
Fantastic video and a inspiration to us all , great to see kite builder keeping old traditions alive well .Thanks Colin and Jim for sharing
It's a bit sad that it has to be someone of Scottish descent keeping this particular item going, rather than those who would claim ownership of it.
@@JimNicholls Jim, Maori kite making is now commonly included in many Maori arts and crafts courses in Polytechnics and marae-based learning facilities. I get a steady flow of enquiries and feedback from young Maori students that are making these kites.
@@bobmaysmor8724 Why do we never see any of them flying, Bob? A kite that doesn't fly has no meaning, so I hope that the people who are making them also make the effort to get them into the air. Colin's one is still the only example that I know of with proof that it is actually a flying object.
@@JimNicholls I'm not sure why Jim but public kite days in NZ tend to be a bit Eurocentric - that's an observation, not a criticism.... over the years most of the photos that I have been sent were taken at maraes, at Polytechs with groups of students and at cultural festivals etc. They certainly are out there but just maybe not at mainstream events.
Wonderful seeing this. TY sir.
I was privileged to see and video this kite.
Very nice. Well done Colin
He did do well, David, but I was surprised that he agreed to be filmed with the kite - he's very camera-shy.
Wonderful share today..spirited and beautiful in its making..this kite is a treasure. A big thank you to Colin for sharing this great possession with the rest of us.
Colin did a great job, Priscilla, so I was very happy to have the chance to show his work.
Brilliant Colin!!!
He did well!
Well done.
Colin did a great job, as usual, Glenn!
one of the best videos ever !
I'm not sure about that, but thank you anyway. Colin did a great job - I just pointed the camera.
Jim Nicholls I love strange and vintage kites !! ❤️❤️❤️
Liked the music ..loved the kite..and love the share.
All credit to Colin - the only man in New Zealand to have successfully built and flown a "genuine" Maori kite for many, many years as far as I know. You will not find another video of one of these kites actually flying.
Great to see a piece of kite history in the air. 💨🌀
Thanks, Charlie. Colin had talked of this item before, but it was the first time he'd ever been motivated to bring it out of storage.
wonderful, thanks a lot for this video!
Glad you liked it, Alexander.
What a beautiful demonstration. Oddly enough I was just looking for books about kites last week. Not many books out there... :(
There aren't many except in the library these days - not enough demand to keep many of them in print, unfortunately.
Colin ya legend tino pai ehoa
Thank you for your beautiful video 🩷🩷🩷
I'm glad you liked it.
Interesting kite comes alive after sitting so long. I like the music it danced to!
I would have used some Maori music, Mark, but couldn't find any suitable. This was the best I could do.
Beautiful to see, as I understand it the Maori were flying kites long before Chinese ancestors, and the earliest were leaf kites, including those used for fishing.
Maori as such didn't exist until about 800 years ago, when Polynesian explorers found what was then the last large land mass unoccupied by humans and settled here. There are lots of ideas about who made the first kites, but we shall never know for sure, although there is evidence that the Chinese had them 2000 years ago. and maybe a lot longer. No-one knows when leaf kites were first used as, unlike the Chinese, the makers had no writing to record it.
The Maori didn't ever use leaf kites for fishing - this was more common throughout Melanesia.
a wonderful kite. i make all my own and when they fly it feels so good
I'm sure it does. Colin did a great job with this one, and I wish that I had his skills.
Beautiful kite.
☆☆☆☆☆
It's certainly a rare one, Nara! Colin did a great job with it.
A great history homemade kite well done.
Colin did a very good job of making that kite. I have still never seen video of another one flying.
Maori used these for war ceremonies and others activities such as the joy of just flying them. For my next primitive challenge, I am going to try and catch kahawai with one.
I'd be very interested in knowing if you succeed, and so would Colin, who built this kite. We have not been able to find another video of one actually flying, although there are several of people building them. To me, as a kite-flier, it's not a kite unless it flies. Good luck with your project!
Maori Kite give life by Colin MC George, Made with Love, 'Free, Free at last, Thank the Gods I'm Free to Fly again!' :^{D
I hope we shall see it fly again, Raymond.
Angeline the Baker, that is a song that originated where I live, Blue Ridge moutains of Va. Old kite, old music, nice.
You recognized it! Yes, I found it in UA-cam's free library - I couldn't find any Maori music that was free to use.
Now that is very cool as well as informative, I must ask where did he source the materials to build such a kite?
Materials were found locally, Meiumi, probably growing along the river bank, although flax grows in many places here.
Was going to think about making my own but nothing like that grows around here ha, I'll have to get creative
You'll probably find something, Meiumi. It needs to be light, strong, and not porous to the wind. It's important to collect things at the right time, when the leaves and stems are very dry. Let me know how you get on.
Three materials were used - the dried leaves of Raupo (bullrush) Typha orientalis, the culms of Toetoe, (also known as kakaho) Cortaderia splendens and the split leaves of Harakeke (flax) Phormium tenax. All of these are commonly found throughout New Zealand. Overseas the leaves of the common bullrush and the culms of young pampas grass could be used.
We made a bunch of these at a lesson today here in Dunedin.
I hope you get to fly them - it would be great to see a whole bunch of them in the air.
We're going to make another to fly.
Good luck!
kites have personalities, at least that's what i believe.
this one seems to want to fly so badly after being hung for so long
It was certainly eager. I don't think Colin will neglect it for so long next time.
Wow
Glad you enjoyed it.
@@JimNicholls Thanks your words are valuable..... Which material is used in this kite....
They are New Zealand plants of the bulrush and flax families and the frame is a local type of pampas grass.
@@JimNicholls Thanks for this useful and interesting information...
😮❤❤❤❤❤❤
What a great kite & history lesson! I have a few kites that are about 24 years old that I haven't flown. I shipped them home from Japan on my honeymoon and they have been still since. I'm going to make it a point to fly them all within the next year and not worry that they may break. Thanks for a great video!
That sounds like a good plan - kites should be flown!
Absolutely brilliant! New Zealand is famous for modern kite production (and is a world leader on old aircraft too!) - perhaps you can spark a Maori kite revival, even if interpretations in new materials. I see your government has something on the web on this -teara.govt.nz/en/kites-and-manu-tukutuku/page-1
John, there's a lot written about the old kites, but no real interest in building and flying them these days, which is a pity. I think any revival should not come from me or from Colin, but I do know someone (non-Maori) who has re-created one of the Maori birdman kites in modern materials and successfully flown it several times. I don't really feel that it has a lot of point as, other than perhaps the birdman, Maori kites didn't have particularly exciting forms and would not look at all special in ripstop nylon and fibreglass. As to modern kites, very few are actually made in New Zealand these days. The Peter Lynn Kites company has most of its items made in China, and in any event produces few kites - most of its creations are "line laundry" which cannot fly without a lifter kite. Old aircraft restoration and reproduction is certainly quite a thing here, though.