Catlins carving link to ancestor

Maureen Wylie (left) and her daughter, Ruth Wylie, both descendants of 19th-century Catlins Maori...
Maureen Wylie (left) and her daughter, Ruth Wylie, both descendants of 19th-century Catlins Maori farmer Haimona Rakiraki (below), stand by a kahmai tree featuring a carving he is believed to have done in 1889. The tree stands in Queen Elizabeth II convenant and at Nuggetburn, near Kaka Point. Photo by Glenn Conway.
It may be a simple carving made on a tree in coastal native bush, but the discovery of a 119-year-old inscription from a 19th-century South Otago Maori landowner has left his descendants overwhelmed in 2008.

Five written lines cut into a kahmai tree - Jakc, Same, Lakatipu, Jan, 1889 - were recently found by pest control officer Lance Burgess.

The find, in a 30ha Queen Elizabeth II convenant-protected bush at Nuggetburn, halfway between Kaka Point and Nugget Point, is believed to be the handiwork of one-time prominent Maori landowner Haimona Rakiraki, nicknamed Lakatipu.

Two of his sons, Jack and Sam, were elieved to be with him when he made the carving in the summer of 1889.

And yesterday, for the first time, his descendants viewed the carving for themselves.

The Otago Daily Times walked through the bush with Rakiraki's great-great-granddaughter, Maureen Wylie, and her daughter, Ruth Wylie, to the tree, guided by neighbouring farmer Winston Parks who seemed thrilled to be part of a family reunion unlike any other.

''Now we definitely know he [Rakiraki] left his mark, Mrs Wylie senior said.

The Wylies are passionate South Otago Maori historians and were grateful for the chance to see the faded markings of one of their relatives, regarded as a man who left his mark in many other ways on the Clutha district.

Mr Parks was alerted to the find after Mr Burgess was laying traps in the area. A long-time friend of the Wylies, he immediately contacted the family to suggest a find of great interest might have been unearthed.

Pushing their way through bush yesterday, the Wylies' excitement grew as they neared the tree, which Mr Parks had marked with a pink ribbon.

Greeted in the bush by fantails and other bird life, Mrs Wylie senior said the area was a peaceful and beautiful setting and the perfect lace to have found another important link in Maori history.

Most of the carving is still clearly visible and the Wylies were pleasantly surprised to see time and the elements had not caused deterioration of the wording, apart from the second-bottom line, which they suspect reads ''Jan'', meaning January.

Mrs Wylie senior said it had been an emotional and satisfying journey.

''It may just be a carving, but it's pretty special to us,'' she said.

Haimona Rakiraki was born about 1800 at Manuhaea, between Lake Hawea and Wanaka, and as a young man became chief of a Maori tribe on the West Coast.

It is believed he came into contact with both Thomas Hocken and Frederick Tuckett, who were impressed with his standing in the community.

Rakiraki was his original and only name until he was baptised by the Rev Charles Creed near Wilsher Bay in 1845.

He was then given the Christian name of Haimona, or Simon. He later earned the nickname Lakatipu because he was adverse to working on Sundays. It was a combination
of Raki Tapu (the Sabbath) and Laki (day or sky).

Rakiraki moved around after leaving the Wanaka area and he and his family groups made their way down the southern coastline, living for a time at Inch Clutha, Kaitangata and Molyneux before settling near Wilsher Bay, where he logged and farmed.

Valuing a good education, he gifted land so a school could be established in the area for his and other children. Rakiraki is believed to have died in 1895 aged in his mid 90s.

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