Tales of time and scale: Looking back in time through Aotearoa’s rock art, and forward to revitalisation and kaitiakitanga
An interdisciplinary project, co-led by Amanda Symon from the Ngāi Tahu Māori Rock Art Trust and Dr Phil Novis from the Bioeconomy Science Institute, in partnership with Paemanu Ngāi Tahu Contemporary Visual Arts Trust, has won a Marsden Fund Council Award
Marsden Fund Council Awards were created to support outstanding researchers to pursue ambitious interdisciplinary projects that seek to uncover new knowledge. This year, the Council has supported two of these major awards.
This project will investigate rock art – an ancient art form found in more than 900 caves and rock shelters across Aotearoa New Zealand. The lead investigators will collaborate with a range of experts in mātauranga Māori, archaeology, palaeoecology, and cutting-edge technologies to study Māori rock art and learn more about the original artists, their subjects, and their methods and tikanga (cultural protocols). They will also seek to glean new knowledge about our changing ecosystems from the rock art and address degradation by biological contaminants.
Rock art (tuhituhi o neherā) has been created by generations of Māori since the first voyagers arrived more than 700 years ago. To date, most Māori rock art has been recorded in Te Wai Pounamu – the South Island. Information from archives and museums, and from descendants of the original artists, will be collated by the researchers, some of whom are custodians of Māori traditional knowledge.
The researchers will analyse palaeoecological evidence like ancient DNA to reveal patterns of vegetation and microclimate at the sites of rock art over many years. At the same time, the scientists will analyse how rock art is being degraded by physical and biological processes. Water and microbes such as algae, lichens, bacteria, and fungi are destroying many paintings, and the remaining examples of tuhituhi o neherā are at risk without intervention.
The research team will collaborate with international experts to draw on their experiences with analysis and restoration of ancient rock art, allowing the team to select conservation methods that will be appropriate in a local context. They will seek to identify ways to prevent microbial colonisation and erosion of rock surfaces, to prevent loss of the artwork, and protect this cultural heritage for generations to come.
The researchers will non-invasively analyse in situ art, and fragments and samples from museums and other collections, using non-contact spectroscopy to understand how ancient pigments were created and where the ingredients were sourced.
In parallel, Ngāi Tahu artists will collaborate with scientists using an iterative process to ‘reverse engineer’ the recipe for rock art paint, based on both tribal knowledge and the results of scientific analysis, helping to rejuvenate traditional knowledge and practices.
The knowledge generated by this Award will enable Māori to reconnect with the taonga created by their tūpuna (ancestors). It will also be valued by many others. For example, Tourism New Zealand has noted an increase in international visitors who are seeking a deeper and more authentic engagement with Māori culture and heritage, and who will value opportunities to view these windows into the past and to connect with contemporary art that revitalises the art-form.
Phil Novis sampling algae from limestone rock surfaces (photo credit: John Hunt, Bioeconomy Science Institute)