A #sketch of a #warrior of the #Māori people of #Aotearoa (New Zealand) the #culture with which I identify. Found at the southwestern point of the #Polynesian triangle, the cultural history of Māori people is tied into a larger Polynesian phenomenon and share similar cultural traditions such as religion, social organisation, myths, and material culture.

Polynesian #seafarers were ocean #navigators and #astronomers. Polynesians were capable of travelling long distances by sea. The strong female presence among early settlers in New Zealand suggests Polynesian #migration #voyages were deliberate rather than accidental. The most current reliable evidence strongly indicates that initial settlement of New Zealand occurred around 1280 CE.

A defining attribute of the Māori culture is it’s strong visual language. The face markings you can see on the sketch are known as Tā moko and can also be found on the body. Tā moko is the permanent body and face marking by Māori, the #indigenous people of New Zealand. Traditionally it is distinct from #tattoo and #tatau in that the skin was carved by uhi (chisels) rather than punctured. This left the skin with grooves, rather than a smooth surface.

Captain James Cook wrote in 1769: The marks in general are spirals drawn with great nicety and even elegance. One side corresponds with the other. The marks on the body resemble foliage in old chased ornaments, convolutions of filigree work, but in these they have such a luxury of forms that of a hundred which at first appeared exactly the same no two were formed alike on close examination.

#Drawn on #iPad in #AdobeIdeas using the #Wacom #Bamboostylus. #AdobeDrawing

#Maori #Toa #NewZealand #Polynesia #Pacific #Waka #Tamoko #Moko #Whakairo #Kowhaiwhai