Waka (canoe)
Waka are Māori watercraft, usually canoes ranging in size from small, unornamented canoes used for fishing and river travel to large, decorated war canoes up to long.
The earliest remains of a canoe in New Zealand were found near the Anaweka estuary in a remote part of the Tasman District and radiocarbon-dated to about 1400. The canoe was constructed in New Zealand, and was a sophisticated canoe, compatible with the style of other Polynesian voyaging canoes at that time.
Since the 1970s, about eight large double-hulled waka of about 20 metres have been constructed for oceanic voyaging to other parts of the Pacific. They are made of a blend of modern and traditional materials, incorporating features from ancient Melanesia, as well as Polynesia.
Waka taua (war canoes)
Waka taua are large canoes manned by up to 80 paddlers and are up to in length. Large waka, such as Ngā Toki Matawhaorua, which are usually elaborately carved and decorated, consist of a main hull formed from a single hollowed-out log, along with a carved upright head and tailboard. The gunwale is raised in some by a continuous plank, which gives increased freeboard and prevents distortion of the main hull components when used in a rough seas. Sometimes the hull is further strengthened, as in the case of Te Winika, a 200-year-old design, by a batten or stringer running lengthwise both inside and outside the hull just above the loaded waterline. The resurgence of Māori culture has seen an increase in the numbers of waka taua built, generally on behalf of a tribal group, for use on ceremonial occasions.Traditionally the war canoe was highly tapu. No cooked food was allowed in the craft and the waka had to be entered over the gunwales, not the bow or stern, which were highly decorated with powerful symbols. Waka were often painted with black or white with black representing death. The main colour was red, using paint made from kōkōwai, which stood for tapu. Sometimes a waka would be placed upright as a marker for a dead chief with the curved bottom of the hull carved. Māori told missionaries during the Musket Wars that battles between waka took place at sea with the aim being to ram an enemy's waka amidships at high speed. The ramming vessel would ride up over the gunwale and either force it under water or cause it to roll over. This description matches the attack on the ship's boat of Abel Tasman in Golden Bay in 1642 when a Māori catamaran rammed a cockboat and four Dutch sailors were killed.
Traditional construction
During the classic period a hapū would select a tōtara tree and prepare it years ahead for felling. Tōtara is a lightweight wood with a high natural oil content that helps prevent rot. This would include the removal of bark from one side of the trunk and the clearing of the ground and the planting of food crops for workers. After a karakia, the tree would be felled by a combination of fires around the base and chopping with toki. On an especially large tree with aerial roots a stage about 3 m high was built of wood. On this was built a framework on which was suspended a giant upside-down toki, about 2.5 m long. The long axis of the toki was tied to the crossmember of the upper framework so that it could pivot back and forth, like a swing. Heavy rocks were tied to each side of the long axis at its lowest point to give momentum. The toki was pulled back and released so that the cutting edge bit into the wood that was weakened by fire. It could take two to three weeks to cut down a large tree in this manner.Once felled, the head of the tree and branches were removed, then the hull was roughly shaped in situ, using fire and hand adzes, under the guidance of the chief designer. A stone toki was used by relatively gentle, but regular and repeated blows. The head was soaked in water to make the binding swell and hold the stone blade more firmly. Once the shaping was complete, the log of 3–4 tonnes was pulled by teams of men to a stream or river, using multiple ropes made from raupō. Some men pulled the waka forward while others restrained it on downhill slopes. Accidents at this stage were apparently common. Saplings were used as skids and rollers over uneven ground.
The final shaping was done closer to the papakainga to be nearer to food. A waka could take a year to make if the construction went smoothly, but it could be abandoned if there was an accident or a death of an important person. Such abandoned, uncompleted waka have been found in post-contact times. Most large waka were built in several main interlocking sections and stitched together with flax rope. Small pegs were put into the holes, which swelled and sealed when wet. Tree gum could also seal the holes. A large finished waka weighed about three tonnes and could remain in use for many decades. All large waka had names and were objects of pride and admiration.
The image above shows a waka taua with unusually high freeboard. A noticeable feature of a loaded waka taua was its very low freeboard of 400–500 mm, which made the vessel unseaworthy in all but good weather, despite the presence of one or two young men on board dedicated to bailing. The normal timber used, tōtara, is a lightweight native podocarp, which retains its natural oils even when cut down. This prevented the timber opening up and splitting. Angela Ballara noted that they only put to sea when it was fine. One voyage across the stormy Cook Strait was delayed for a week while the travellers waited for fine weather. The missionary William Williams, son of Henry Williams, noted that the voyage of a waka taua was a leisurely affair due to the requirements of foraging for food and waiting for fine weather.
The 1974 National Film Unit documentary – Tāhere Tikitiki – the making of a Māori canoe – records the 18 month long construction of a waka taua – the Tāhere Tikitiki. The waka was commissioned by the Māori Queen, Te Arikinui Dame Te Atairangikaahu, and constructed at Tūrangawaewae Marae by master carver Piri Poutapu. The film, directed by David Sims, is a visual insight into the building of this cultural taonga.
Traditional sails
Tasman noted that two of the waka which attacked his ships in Golden Bay in today's Tasman District in December 1642, had a sail that Tasman referred to as a Tingang sail—a small triangular sail often temporarily hoisted. Later, early Europeans from the 1830s onwards gave detailed descriptions of the use, appearance and materials used in Māori sails. Although there were regional variations within New Zealand, most sails were temporary and could be hoisted or struck in a few minutes. The roughly triangular sail, usually made from either flax, tī leaves or raupō or a combination, was set about one-third back from the bow. The raupō sail was much lighter. The mast and yard spars were small diameter, with the yard being thinner, about high, long, and permanently attached to the sail so the rig was raised as a single unit. Loops were woven into both the luff and the leech of the sail for attachment to the spars. Tānekaha branches were favoured, as it was common, as far south as Nelson. It was a straight, strong and flexible wood. An added advantage may have been that the wood bled red tannin, a colour strongly favoured by Māori.File:Maori war canoe, drawing by Alexander Sporing.jpg|thumb|Māori waka with triangle sail drawn by Herman Spöring during Cook's first voyage to New Zealand in 1769
The head of the triangle sail was the shortest—about —and often decorated with tufts of feathers that may have served as wind indicators. The mast was held in place by a forestay, a backstay and two side stays. The sheet to control the sail angle led from the top of the yard directly to the sheet handler, although early British sailors were critical of the sheet being tied off. The sail was only used downwind, as the waka lacked a keel or centre-board to prevent leeway, therefore preventing windward sailing. Rarely, two sails of the same size, were used in larger waka.
Due to its slim hull the waka could sail at considerable speed down wind. When struck, the sail was wrapped around the two spars and laid along the centre of the waka thwarts, between the paddlers. Sometimes a pattern was woven into the sail, using a different material. The only known example of a traditional waka sail is in the British Museum. Capsizes were not unknown, with the hull being tipped to get rid of water, then bailed out. This type of triangular sail, with straight mast and high angled sprit, is identical to that used in the Marquesan Islands. Although there are references to the use of the Society Island–type crescent-shaped sail in New Zealand, these appear to have been rare and no examples exist.
Technology changes
From the arrival of James Cook in 1769 and especially Marion Du Fresne's longer stay in New Zealand in 1772, Māori were able to obtain iron and steel, which did not exist in Māori culture prior to the arrival of Europeans. Māori quickly adopted this material, especially for carving. Māori learnt to ask sailors to sharpen ships' nails to a chisel point on a ship's wheel in exchange for fish. This period between 1779 and 1820 has been called the golden age of Māori wood carving. Much of the carving was on waka taua.During the middle 19th century, from 1835, the arrival of large numbers of European settlers and ships meant that ship's boats were far more commonly available and were increasingly used by Māori in preference to waka. In 1839 100 ships visited The Bay of Islands. This was a trend that the missionaries such as Marsden and Williams had noted had begun in the 1830s. The beamier, lighter, ship's boat was a better load carrier with more stability and was sometimes equipped with sails for windward sailing. Use of ship's boats became common, as many Māori worked on a wide variety of sealing, whaling and trading sailing vessels, both in New Zealand and in the Pacific.
Few waka were used for movement of warriors during the Land Wars: When the Waikato campaign started in 1863, the government forces made a point of sinking all the waka they could find on the Waikato River and its tributaries to slow rebel communication. Later, some fine examples of these were placed in the Auckland War Memorial Museum.