Māori Jade Jewellery
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Māori Jade Jewellery |
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BuyNZ Home Alpaca Mud Beauty Possum Fur Sheepskin Souvenirs Wine Wooden Gifts Wool |
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Maori Design Examples
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Maori Design Examples
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Maori Jade jewellery from New Zealand comes in many forms and
designs. There are many Greenstone pendants to choose from as well as
green stone earrings and bracelets. It is also known in New Zealand as Greenstone and, commonly,
by it's Maori name of Pounamu.
Technically the name Pounamu covers a number of differing materials but they are all of the nephrite jade and bowenite families of rocks. The word Pounamu also means 'dark green' in the language of the Māori. The stone itself occurs in rivers but they usually simply look like ordinary boulders and rocks to the untrained eye. Māori taonga (treasure) has been used by the Māori for centuries to make tools and ornaments or used as the sharp edge of weapons. These items were handed down from generation to generation by the Māoris as they believed that these items had their own Mana or inner supernatural force. Maori jade artefacts were also used as gifts to signify mutual trust when important agreements were made between individuals. Maori jade is only found in the South Island of New Zealand and since 1997 it is all deemed, by act of parliament, to belong to the Ngai Tahu Māori tribe. This site showcases many items of Maori jade jewellery which the discerning shopper can buy direct from New Zealand.
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Other Māori Products |
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