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Pounamu Pounamu is a tough, semi-precious stone also known as greenstone or New Zealand jade. All pounamu is sourced from river boulders in the South Island. No in-place deposit has ever been found. On the West Coast pounamu is found mainly surrounding the Taramakau and Arahura Rivers. Pounamu is culturally important to Maori. It is of particular significance to the Ngai Tahu iwi in whose territory in the South Island most pounamu resources are found. In 1997 the government vested all ownership of pounamu resources with Ngai Tahu.As kaitiaki of all pounamu Ngai Tahu have developed a comprehensive Pounamu Management Plan which details areas open to public fossicking, what to do if raw pounamu or artifacts are discovered and the supply or export of pounamu. Maori classify pounamu according to colour. There are four main types: kawakawa, kaharangi, inanga and tangiwai. Maori traded pounamu in pre-European times, and made adzes, chisels and fishooks, as well as the short hand club or mere and hei-tiki neck ornaments.p> A commercial industry now sells carved pounamu as ornaments and jewellery, mainly to the tourist trade. Hokitika, once a thriving gold mining centre and busy port, is now the centre of greenstone carving activity. Pounamu is a metamorphic rock, formed by pressure and temperature associated with violent tectonic processes deep within the Southern Alps. Uplift and erosion of the Alps over the last twenty million years has exposed the greenstone to the surface. High rainfall, regular patterns of thawing and freezing, and the effects of glaciation have further exposed the greenstone which was then transported downriver as boulders.
above left: The traditional hei-tiki is an example of the intricate pounamu carving styles practiced by Maori. It is easy to see why such pieces assume the status of taonga.
below left: Pounamu, flax weaving, paua shell and a greywacke beach stone. Pounamu is an important part of the modern tourism industry on the West Coast.
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