Maori Chieftain Statue

Nice

A Māori Figure in a Kaitaka Cloak appears as a traditional bronze sculpture, but when artist Molly Macalister created the monumental image of dignity in 1964-1966, she sent revolutionary ripples through public art commissioning in Auckland. The warrior is clad in the prestigious cloak of a chief. He gazes towards the horizon and holds a mere, a symbol of peace, at his side. A pivotal work that demonstrates changing attitudes of the 1960s, A Māori Figure in a Kaitaka Cloak was the first public sculpture in New Zealand to be commissioned from a female artist. Macalister's design met with considerable controversy, many arguing for a more stereotypical tourist image of a Māori warrior in a fighting pose.

Historical and symbolic monument.

Instead of a Maori warrior in a fighting pose and wearing a grass skirt, what greets visitors arriving by ship to Auckland, the City of Sails, is this larger-than-life bronze statue of a Maori Chieftain wrapped in a full-length Kaitaka cloak, the prestigious cloak of a chief. In his right hand the chief holds a mere, a traditional club made of wood, bone or greenstone.

Beautiful bronze statue opposite the new railway building on the quayside in downtown Auckland. Once the railway development is completed, the area around the statue will also be lovely, but even with all of the building works, this statue is worth seeing if you are in the quayside area.

Molly Macalister's justly famous Maori rangatira. Loved by all Aucklanders. One of the finest public sculptures in New Zealand.

A bronze sculpture made by Molly Macalister, named Māori Chief, also known as A Māori Figure in a Kaitiaki Cloak. The sculpture is commissioned by Auckland City Council in 1964. The sculpture stands tall across the Britomart and Ferry Building, at the corner of Queen and Quay Streets. This sculpture made a history in New Zealand as it is the first public sculpture commissioned from a female artist.