Te Aka Whānau – A Family Connected
Te Aka Whānau means “the family vine”. This name was chosen because these two taonga represent a whānau whose lives grow from the same source and remain connected through love, loss and new life. The koru extend from a shared parent stem, much like vines or young fern fronds growing together, while both pieces were carved from the same piece of Pounamu.
A father commissioned this set as wedding-day gifts for his fiancée and their young son. He wanted the taonga to carry the story of their whānau and eventually become treasured pieces passed down through future generations.
The larger piece is a 50mm roimata for the mother. Roimata are associated with emotion, healing, comfort and the strength that develops through difficult experiences. This made it an appropriate form for holding both the sorrow and the joy within their family’s journey.
Carved into its surface are two koru connected through a central parent stem. The larger koru represents their young son and the growth, new life and future he brings. The smaller koru acknowledges an earlier pregnancy that was lost. Both grow from the same central line, showing that each child holds a permanent place within the whānau and remains part of its story. The deeper carved lines make these relationships a clear and lasting part of the design.
The second taonga is a small 40mm toki for their son. The toki represents strength, courage, determination and growing capability. It is a form he can carry as he grows, reminding him of his place within the whānau and the support surrounding him.
Both taonga were carved from the same lighter green Pounamu. Beyond its beauty, Pounamu carries ideas of connection, strength and continuity. Using one stone for both pieces creates a physical bond between mother and son: two individual taonga that will travel their own paths while always sharing the same origin.
I appreciated the thought that went into this commission. Te Aka Whānau holds the complete story of this family without separating the difficult experiences from the joyful ones. It was meaningful to carve two taonga that mark a wedding day while also looking back at what shaped the whānau and forward to the generations that will follow.
