Perfume from local taonga
Keeping Maori culture alive with fragrance? That’s the idea behind ‘MEA’, the beautiful perfume brand created by Kāti Huirapa Rūnaka ki Puketeraki with the support of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu.
Their aim is to revive and share the Ngāi Tahu cultural practice of perfume making with the world, telling the story of their long and special relationship with a plant called Taramea (Aciphylla aurea). Taramea is listed as a taonga species in the Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998.
“Taku hei piripiri
Takuhei mokimoki
Takuhei tāwhiri
Takukati taramea
Adorned with richly perfumed moss,
Festooned with sweet smelling fern,
Embellished with aromatic sap,
My fragrant locket of evocative piercing Taramea”
Traditionally Taramea leaves were gathered, plaited and the base of each plait was singed over embers until the heat forced the gum to the top, where it was collected. The gum was then mixed with animal fat, such as refined pigeon or muttonbird oil.
Fragrant sachets took their names from the materials composing them. For example, hei raukawa, hei piripiri, hei tawhiri, hei mapuna, hei mokimoki, kati taramea, pona tarata, etc. Perfumed oil produced in this way was highly valued and was used for barter for food and greenstone, and as koha between rangatira.
After more than three years of research, Kati Huirapa Runanga and TRONT developed four fragrances from Taramea. This is a pilot project and depending on its success they aim to develop a sustainable business to reinvigorate and share the Ngāi Tahu cultural practice of perfume-making with the world while retaining cultural authenticity for Ngāi Tahu.
People of Ngāi Tahu harvesting Taramea near Lake Mahinerangi
Buy from the MEA range online and play a part in the revival of a beautiful Ngāi Tahu tradition:
