Heru (ornamental comb)

This large heru (ornamental comb) is made from whale bone. It has ten teeth and a carved manaia (stylised beaked figure) head with an inlaid pāua (large New Zealand abalone with blue-green inner shell) shell eye. It has an aged off-white patina and has sustained damage, as evidenced by a large triangular chip along the upper curved basal edge.

Topknot traditionMāori men traditionally kept long hair that was oiled and sometimes braided, and dressed upon their heads in elaborate topknots. These were augmented with heru and bird feathers, particularly feathers from the now extinct huia (native New Zealand bird: Heteralocha acutirostris).