A seasonal shift and cultural dimensions of Matariki were acknowledged by people from all walks of life at Tūhura Otago Museum, its director says.
About 800 people gathered on the museum reserve in Dunedin yesterday morning. Museum director Dr Ian Griffin described the crowd as "brilliantly diverse’’.
The Maori New Year was celebrated and people from various parts of the world were there, he said.
Nine karakia, one for each of the stars of the Matariki cluster, were complemented by animated projections on the museum building exterior.
"We started off with Matariki rising, and then we had the sun, the wind, the earth, the sea, the land, and that was all animated in the background,’’ Dr Griffin said.
"The timing of Matariki is always close to the winter solstice down here in New Zealand and it just turns out ... the Pleiades or the Matariki star cluster rise low in the northeast around the time of the winter solstice,’’ Dr Griffin said.
"So the Maori used that as a way of marking the beginning of the new season, because obviously it’s the coldest time of year and when you start to see Matariki, you know things are going to get better"
The museum had a full day of Matariki-themed events, including a demonstration of traditional musical instruments and activities for children.
Dr Griffin said there was a lovely atmosphere in the morning.
"During one of the karakia, people hold up pictures of their loved ones who’ve passed away in the last year and call out their names,’’ he said.
"So, we had a number of people who came along with their pictures and held them up and that was quite a moving part of the ceremony"
