Maori Heads

Maori Heads

By Ishaan Tharoor Wednesday, May. 12, 2010





Robert Pratta / Reuters



Last week, France's National Assembly voted to return the mummified heads of 16 Maoris from various museums back to their homeland in New Zealand. In traditional Maori practice, the heads of one's forefathers, often tattooed to the bone of the skull, were kept as totems honoring their spirits. But a macabre colonial-era fascination with these remains led to a lucrative trade, and many of the embalmed heads whisked away to Europe in the 19th century were actually Maori slaves, forcibly tattooed and decapitated by local or foreign opportunists.
At one time, over 500 Maori heads languished in the cellars of European museums; only in the past two decades, following calls from the New Zealand government as well as rights groups, have over 320 been repatriated. "You do not build a culture on trafficking," said France's culture minister, Frederic Mitterand, on May 5. "You build a culture on respect and on exchange." Just three years ago, though, his ministry blocked a French museum's independent offer to return the lone Maori head in its possession, fearful that it could lead to an emptying of other untold skeletons in France's closet.



http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1988719_1988728,00.html?iid=moreontime

interesting...but im wondering how is this information of relevance? =)

I'm glad they're being returned to New Zealand. It's the right thing for France to do.

Ummu Sufyaan said:

interesting...but im wondering how is this information of relevance? =)

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When England occupied Egypt they used to steal mummies, and use them to make 'eternal creams' or even as fuel for trains, of course no accounting for the number of monuments smuggled and stolen outside of the country.. after reading the article, I was angered and relieved to know that their disrespect and disregard to human life and property is just an innate sense of superiority and entitlement that didn't extend itself only to Muslim countries.. They are simply pillaging thieves by their very nature..

did you read this part?

many of the embalmed heads whisked away to Europe in the 19th century were actually Maori slaves, forcibly tattooed and decapitated by local or foreign opportunists.

It is good to know how the world around you acquired some of its museum pieces!

By coincidence I just finished reading a Smithsonian Article about the "Head" trade that flourished in the 1800s and to some extent even to today. I used to be under the impression that head hunting was the practice of brutal savages, but it seems that the head collectors are richly dressed business tycoons in fancy big city offices. OOOOps, I'm being redundant head collectors are brutal savages.

TRIVIA:

The native Americans did not practice scalping, it was introduced by the British.

In WW2 the USA government paid a bounty to Pacific Islanders for Japanese heads. Head Hunting was legalized in American Samoa, provided the heads were Japanese.

Woodrow said:

TRIVIA:

The native Americans did not practice scalping, it was introduced by the British.

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I didn't know that.. but I can definitely believe that!

τhε ṿαlε'ṡ lïlÿ;1327434 said:

I didn't know that.. but I can definitely believe that!

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I just did so quick checking, it seems that today's history books no longer agree with the history books I read in school. what is being said in todays books is:

"Although the Europeans did not originate scalping, they certainly did encourage its promotion and spread. This was accomplished by the posting of bounties for each scalp brought in ..."

But I find this in Native American sites:

Many people believe native americans were blood-thirsty savages who always scalped their enemies. American Indians probably learned the practice of scalping from the Europeans. Although archaeologists have found a few prehistoric human remains in the Americas that show evidence of cut marks on the skulls, they disagree about whether these marks are evidence of scalping. Absolutely no evidence exists that scalping was a widespread practice in the Americas before European contact. If it was practiced, it was done by very few tribes and then very infrequently.

On the other hand, scalping was a well-established war badge for Europeans. Ancient Scythians (Russians) practiced it. Herodotus, the Greek Historian, wrote of them in B.C. 440, "The Scythian soldier scrapes the scalp clean of flesh and softening it by rubbing between the hands, uses it thenceforth as a napkin. The Scyth is proud of these scalps and hangs them from his bridle rein; the greater the number of such napkins that a man can show, the more highly is he esteemed among them. Many make themselves cloaks by sewing a quantity of these scalps together."

Much later the English paid bounties for Irish heads. Because scalps were easier to transport and store than heads, Europeans sometimes substituted scalping for headhunting. Records show that the Earl of Wessex, England scalped his enemies in the 11th century.

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SOURCE

History is often written by victors isn't it?

τhε ṿαlε'ṡ lïlÿ;1327466 said:

History is often written by victors isn't it?

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History is almost always what the Victor wants it to be.

τhε ṿαlε'ṡ lïlÿ;1327426 said:

When England occupied Egypt they used to steal mummies, and use them to make 'eternal creams' or even as fuel for trains, of course no accounting for the number of monuments smuggled and stolen outside of the country.. after reading the article, I was angered and relieved to know that their disrespect and disregard to human life and property is just an innate sense of superiority and entitlement that didn't extend itself only to Muslim countries.. They are simply pillaging thieves by their very nature..

did you read this part?

many of the embalmed heads whisked away to Europe in the 19th century were actually Maori slaves, forcibly tattooed and decapitated by local or foreign opportunists.

It is good to know how the world around you acquired some of its museum pieces!

Click to expand...

i hate that. i cant stand how when we (muslim/islam) get looked down upon and yet the only thing we did was implement the sharee3ah. here you have guys spreading democracy (and the other ideologies and religions centuries before this), but secretly taking the wealth and properties of the lands their occupy. at least we are honest about what our cause is :hmm:

Woodrow said:

By coincidence I just finished reading a Smithsonian Article about the "Head" trade that flourished in the 1800s and to some extent even to today. I used to be under the impression that head hunting was the practice of brutal savages, but it seems that the head collectors are richly dressed business tycoons in fancy big city offices. OOOOps, I'm being redundant head collectors are brutal savages.

TRIVIA:

The native Americans did not practice scalping, it was introduced by the British.

In WW2 the USA government paid a bounty to Pacific Islanders for Japanese heads. Head Hunting was legalized in American Samoa, provided the heads were Japanese.

Click to expand...

before Christianity came to England (i dont think thats what England was called/known as at the time though?) paganism existed and was practiced. could that be where head scalping was derived from?

History is often written by victors isn't it?

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this is why i choose not delve into these matters until and unless i can be assured they come from a reliable source. the one-sided rubbish just peeves me off and its always makes one side the perpetrators and one side the victims (rule of thumb: the side that makes themselves look victimized, generally are the perpetrators). so many times i have wanted to go tot library and borrow some books on history (good for refutations ), but just dont bother for the reason just mentioned. might as well as be chasing a mirage.

your comment actually reminded me of a comment i heard from that show The Inventors...as soon as i heard 'gun powder' 'discovery' 'Arab' mentioned in one sentence i tuned out of the channel and the whole show.