MOKO: DECORATION, SIGN OF RANK AND COAT OF ARMS

"Moko is the name that the Maoris of New Zealand give to their particular tatoo pattern; it's basic and most important element is the spiral. The Maoris used it to create intricate and unique artistic designs.

In the hierarchical society of the Maoris, tattooing was a prerogative of the noble and free. Priests simply wore a small pattern above the right eye as a symbol of their rank, whilst slaves were forbidden to have any form of tattoo. Women had far fewer tatoos than men. Body-tattooing was also common among the Maoris, but facial decoration was considered more important; the unique moko tatooed on a man's face was a symbold of his identity - indeed it was his coat of arms. Such mokos could be copied, line by line, and in early contacts with Europeans were used as signatures.

In the nineteenth century the Maoris put up a strong resistance to the English invasion, but even in pre-colonial times battles were not uncommon. Vicotrs cut off the heads of conquered enemy chiefs and put them on the palisade surrounding their village; the heads of their own leaders were preserved and venerated. A peace agreement was unthinkable without a mutual exchange of the heads that had been taken. However, the preserved heads coveted in the nineteenth century by European sailors rarely came from the chiefs; the Maoris tattooed the bodies of slain eneies, prisoners of war or slaves, and later treated their skulls and sold them for a high price." [ from 'Decorated Skin ~ a World Survey of Body Art' by Karl Groening]

Below are some examples of this art. Click on the pictures to go to a larger version of the image.

This painting by Gottfried Lindauer shows Tamati Waka Nene, an important Maori chief in the early nineteenth century, with a decorated club. In close combat the Maoris mainly used sticks and flat clubs as shown here. When you look at the larger image, note the decoration on his club, below his hand. From this and other pictures, it would appear that earrings were fastened to the ear by pieces of thong [ouch]. Tamati Waka Nene appears to be wearing an earring of jet or a long bead of dark wood. Note also that his lips appear to be tatooed.

This marvelous piece is a detail from a carving on a house, circa 1842. The carving is a self-portrait of Raharuhi Rukopo, a master carver of the house of Te Hau ki Turanga. The carving was made in Manatuke, near Gisborne. Ruopo apparently owned a complete set of European carving tools, which he used to develop new styles. The metal tools gave greater creative freedom than the traditional tools made of stone. Note the elongation of the head....

The face of a modern Maori chief with the characteristic spiral tattoo pattern of his rank at a ceremony in Turangawaewae on the Waikato river, 1977. It is interesting to compare the facial features of this modern day Maori with his ancestors. This man looks more like the Aboriginal people of Australia, with his wider, thicker nose and mouth. Both Tamati Waka Nene and Tuahiao (below) have more refined features.

A portrait of the Maori chief, Tauhiao, circa 1880. It is easy in these examples to see the wide variety of patterns to be had. Tauhiao's patterns are more 'open' than those of the tattoos of the other two chiefs shown here. Also, notice at his right temple, the sort of triskelion design. Spiralling is prominent at the nose and lower jawline. He appears to be wearing an earring made of shell.

LINES CARVED INTO THE SKIN

"Maori tattooing is unusual, because of the method used. In many parts of Oceania neddle combs were used to tattoo the body, but the spiral lines of Maori face tattoos were usually made with chisel-like implements working directly on the outer surface of the skin.

Like Maori carving, tattoos were carried out be revered and highly paid experts, tohunga-ta-moko. The first tattoo was applied after puberty, but it often took several years before the pattern was complete, since the painful process could only be carried out in a number of separate states. With a few exceptions, women were forbidden to tattoo their foreheads and chins, but, since a red mouth was considered ugly, the lips were tattooed to give them a bluish appearance.

For the Maoris the art of tattooing is closely related to other forms of artistic expression. For instance, the same mythical source in the underworld is often attributed to both carving and tattooing. That the Maoris also decorated inanimate objects with moko, if the objects held a religious significance. The highly artistic carved wooden figures of the gods or dead ancestors on meeting-houses or ceremonial buildings were lavishly decorated in this manner. The entrance gates in the palisades of fortified villages were also made in the shape of tattooed guards. All religious objects and even weapons had spiral decorations."
[ from 'Decorated Skin ~ a World Survey of Body Art' by Karl Groening]

WHY SO INTERESTING?

I, personally, am fascinated by tattoos and scarification and have been for most of my life. Certainly, the people of the South Pacific were masters of the art and still are. The love of tattoos and body piercing amongst the Goth crowd seem to harken back to these ancient times and peoples - as if trying to express some ancestral memory of the days when these practices were part of life. Why are certain people drawn to this expression - to 'gothdom' - as it were? There is no real answer. Seemingly, a lot of it revolves around the 'Watcher culture' - pentagrams, crosses, magic, vampires, dredlocks and irreligion. The 'dark side' of the human psyche, in general. But I would prefer to call it our 'shamanistic' side that recognizes the deep connections of the human spirit with the world around it.

The spiral is found all over the world on standing stones, menhirs and dolmens - not to mention many pagan religious artifacts. It is symbolic of the labyrinth that we must all walk to find our own inner-sanctum - the core of our being. It is also symbolic of the Crooked One; the serpent-power that vivifies all living things, kundalini. This lies dormant - 'dead but dreaming' within each of us, waiting to awaken and open the doors of universal consciousness that give us access to all knowledge of all things and a kind of immortality. As such, the spiral is the great universal symbol of the human spirit on it's journey.

It is also of great interest as it seems to relate in some way to the Picts of ancient Britain. Little is known about the Picts and much is speculated. One thing that seems to be in common agreement from the Roman documents of the day is that the Picts were tattooed all over - faces and bodies. While tattooing is prevailant in the Middle East, amongst people like the Berbers, these tattooes are generally confined to the face and extremities, like hands and feet. There are no other people (as a race) in the world that tattoo their entire bodies, except those races of what is refered to as Oceania - the South Pacific. Could this indicate some link between the mysterious Picts and the people of this region...half a world apart? Could it be a remembrance or a tribute to their place of origin? We can only speculate, but it would be interesting to know.

I have a little something here that you might recognize - an old symbol taken from Pictish stones :-) This symbol is tentatively identified as standing for wisdom and healing, renewal, and immortality. In case you don't recognize it, it is similar to the symbol drawn on Carl's forehead. This same symbology also appears in Aleister Crowley's 'Book of Lies', at Chapter 87. The commentary says the sigil is taken from a Gnostic talisman and refers to the Sacrament.