An ancient Māori war cloak that is one of only five of its kind still known to exist has returned to Auckland, New Zealand, after decades in storage at Durham University’s Oriental Museum. It is the only one of the five currently in New Zealand and will go on display at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. The other four are all in collections in other countries.
Known as a pauku, the cloak was wielded by the warrior to protect his body. It was woven with tight rows of single-pair weft twining and then soaked in water, mud or other materials to harden it. Warriors wore it wrapped around the arm and hand or abdomen in close-quarters combat. The densely-woven textile strengthened by the post-production treatment absorbed the impact of hard blows and helped the warrior deflect the attack. Like Alexander the Great’s linothorax and other textile armors, it is far lighter and far more flexible than metal plate or mail, and in sunny climates, it has the distinct advantage of not heating up like an oven.
The pauku’s documented history can be traced back to the 18th century, but the design dates to the 17th century. It was loaned to Durham University Museum in the 1960s by the Trevelyan family who converted the loan into a gift in 1971. It was kept in storage and was only recognized for its rarity and cultural significance when Māori experts saw it there in 2017.
The pauku is distinguished by its border, which comprises a complex two-directional tāniko technique and a black-on-black background design, achieved through a sophisticated dying process using paru (ferruginous mud). This design, known as wā pōkere, contains mātauranga [traditional knowledge] on the evolution of the beginning of time. The blackness of the tāniko represents the void from which the world emerged from. This design and tāniko technique have not been seen on a kākahu (cloak) in Aotearoa New Zealand in 200 years.
On a five-year research and exhibition loan from the Oriental Museum, Durham University, the pauku will be under the care of Te Aho Mutunga Kore, our textile and fibre knowledge exchange centre for Māori and Pacific communities. Te Aho Mutunga Kore will host the pauku and facilitate access for knowledge holders, creative practitioners and the public. The project will be guided by our Māori curatorial team and the Museum’s tohunga expert weavers advisory group, Taumata Māreikura.
The return of the ancient Māori war cloak to Auckland in Aotearoa will be welcome news for the Māoris, for international historians, anthropologists, and scholars engaged in ethical studies on colonial artifacts residing in western museums.
On 27 & 28 of November 2025, the eminent historian and renowned anthropologist professor Achille Mbembe argued that there is no moral justification for the confiscation and continued retention of non-European artifacts in Western museums. Addressing three large gatherings of scholars at the 600 years old Belgian Catholic University (Katholieke Universiteit te Leuven – KUL), Mbembe suggested restitution as an essential part of the decolonization process, crucial for establishing the truth of the past and repairing relations between Europeans and their exploited overseas brethren.
Mbembe emphasized that these objects were seized during a period of colonial violence that aimed at the “de-symbolization” of native lives, affecting people and their property. He argued that the initial acquisition was often through questionable means, including military expeditions and the manipulation of local populations. He sees traditional Western museums as spaces that “neutralize” the living forces and original meanings of overseas objects by divorcing them from their cultural context and displaying them primarily for aesthetic purposes or colonial propaganda.
For Mbembe, the return of artifacts is not merely a legal or historical issue but a profound ethical one. It is a necessary step in acknowledging the past, fostering a new “relational ethics” with the affected populations, and offering future generations a proper reference point for the study of their history and culture.
The large gatherings of scholars at Leuven’s Kardinaal Mercier Zaal, at the Max Weber Auditorium, and at the Erasmus Huis were offered stimulating food for thought, dialogue, and eventual considerations for appropriate actions.
One of the problems with that is has this guy actually been to a museum in New Zealand that has items from other countries?
One of the first steps in defining where you think ‘your’ things should be displayed is first deciding where ‘other’ people’s things should be displayed. If you have Peruvian items, say, what do Peruvians think about it?