Moko Pounamu Heru Genuine Whale Bone - Pukaki

Carved by Owen Mapp, this elegant Heru comb features a beautifully balanced design of paired spirals and flowing, finely carved grooves. A gently scalloped outline follows the decorative upper section, while a small teardrop opening adds a delicate finishing detail. Soft ivory colouring, threaded with subtle darker markings, gives the piece warmth and character.

Eight long, slender teeth extend beneath the ornate carving, creating a graceful silhouette with softly rounded tips. Worn in the hair, the decorative top forms a striking focal point above a bun or swept-up style. Its harmonious proportions and intricate surface detail also make this Heru a distinctive piece to display and admire.

Bone Heru- used by Māori to fasten long hair into a top knot. These also identified the rank of the wearer and were usually carved from a single piece of whale bone or wood and on occasion decorated with paua shell. Traditionally carved from Whale bone

Whale Bone has always been a special medium for Māori artists, Whales are considered a taonga species, and represent abundance, richness and were regarded as chiefly animals. Some tribes see whales as the descendants of Tangaroa, the god of the ocean and strandings are seen as gifts from Tangaroa and carving them is a way of honouring that gift. Whales possess a tapu (sacred) significance to Māori as both supernatural beings and as harbingers of personal change and spiritual growth.

Genuine Whale bone - Ethically sourced from the Kapiti Island.

Carved by Owen Mapp

Size 125mm long x 50mm wide

This will be the exact piece you will receive in the photos, there may be a slight degree of colour variation based on different computer or device screen resolutions that you are viewing from.