Story: Te aitanga pepeke – the insect world

Tāne battles the insects

Tāne battles the insects

In this artwork by Robert Jahnke, the god Tāne is attacked by insects as he retrieves the three baskets of knowledge from the heavens. The insects were sent by his brother Whiro, who wanted the baskets for himself. Tāne repelled their attacks by calling on the wind to blow them away.

Using this item

Private collection
Reference: Mona Riini and Robert Jahnke, Te Timatanga o te ao; nga kete wananga. Auckland: Shortland, 1992
Artwork by Robert Jahnke

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page:

Bradford Haami, 'Te aitanga pepeke – the insect world - What is te aitanga pepeke?', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/artwork/12608/tane-battles-the-insects (accessed 25 April 2024)

Story by Bradford Haami, published 24 Sep 2007