Story: Children’s play

Māori children playing ruru

Māori children play ruru (also known as kōruru), in a 1907 painting by Gottfried Lindauer. Ruru, usually played with five stones, was a game very similar to the traditional European game of knucklebones.

Using this item

Auckland Art Gallery – Toi o Tāmaki

Reference: 1915/2/21

by Gottfried Lindauer

Permission of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Peter Clayworth, Children’s play – Traditional Māori and settler children’s play, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/40830/maori-children-playing-ruru (accessed 24 June 2026).

Story by Peter Clayworth, published 13 February 2013.