Story: Māori clothing and adornment – kākahu Māori

The maro, a frontal apron tied around the waist, was perhaps the most common and basic traditional Māori garment, and was worn by both men and women. This example of a woman's maro was given to Gilbert Mair (then a captain in the New Zealand militia) at Maungapōhatu, in the depths of the Urewera, in 1870. It is made from muka (flax fibre) with a tāniko border.