Story: Kīngitanga – the Māori King movement

Sacred mountains

At the historic 1856 hui at Pūkawa, Lake Taupō, at which Pōtatau Te Wherowhero was selected as Māori king, the many rangatira present conducted a ceremony to transfer to him their mana. They gathered around a tall flagstaff which had long plaited ropes dangling from it. Iwikau Te Heuheu, the paramount rangatira of Ngāti Tūwharetoa and the host on this occasion, explained that the flagstaff represented his sacred mountain, Tongariro, while each rope represented a mountain sacred to the other iwi present.

Click on this map to see images of many of the maunga sacred to individual iwi Māori.

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How to cite this page:

Rahui Papa and Paul Meredith, 'Kīngitanga – the Māori King movement - Pōtatau Te Wherowhero, 1858–1860', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/interactive/37859/sacred-mountains (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Rahui Papa and Paul Meredith, published 20 Jun 2012, reviewed & revised 2 Mar 2023