Story: Te ture – Māori and legislation

An act of muru, Waikato

This lively series of six drawings was made by an unknown Māori artist between 1860 and 1890. It shows an act of muru, or traditional compensation for wrongdoing, in Waikato. In the first picture the group on the left is the visiting iwi Ngāti Koraki (now known as Ngāti Korokī Kahukura). They are approaching the hosting iwi's village, Pārāwera (near present-day Cambridge). After the two groups dance and eat together the visiting party produces horses in payment for the wrongdoing. The final picture shows a uniformed policeman wrestling with a rider whose horse is alleged to have been stolen.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library
Reference: A-081-001; A-081-002; A-081-003; A-081-004; A-081-005; A-081-006

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Rāwiri Taonui, 'Te ture – Māori and legislation - Māori traditional law', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/zoomify/36522/an-act-of-muru-waikato (accessed 20 April 2024)

Story by Rāwiri Taonui, published 20 Jun 2012