Pounamu

Pounamu (occasionally historically spelt poenamu) is a term for several types of hard and durable stone found in the South Island of New Zealand, the most predominant of which is nephrite jade. They are highly valued in New Zealand, and regarded as taonga (cultural treasures) by Māori. Carvings made from pounamu play an important role in Māori culture.

Name The Māori word pounamu is derived from namu, an archaic word that describes blue-green (or 'grue') cognate with Tahitian ninamu. Pounamu, also used in New Zealand English, in itself refers to two main types of green stone valued for carving: nephrite jade, classified by Māori as kawakawa, kahurangi, īnanga, and other names depending on colour; and translucent bowenite, a type of serpentine, known as tangiwai. The collective term pounamu is preferred, as the other names in common use are misleading, such as New Zealand jade (not all pounamu is jade) and greenstone (a generic term used for unrelated stone from many countries). Pounamu is only found in New Zealand, whereas much of the carved "greenstone" sold in souvenir shops is jade sourced overseas. The Māori classification of pounamu is by colour and appearance; the shade of green is matched against a colour found in nature, and some hues contain flecks of red or brown.

Īnanga pounamu takes its name from the native freshwater fish Galaxias maculatus, one of the common whitebait species in New Zealand, and is pearly-white or grey-green in colour. It varies from translucent to opaque. Īnanga was the variety most prized by Māori for ornaments and mere (short handled clubs). Kahurangi pounamu is highly translucent and has a vivid shade of light green with no spots or flaws. Its name is the Māori word for a person of high rank, and is the rarest variety of pounamu. It was the preferred stone for making toki poutangata (ceremonial adzes) owned by rangatira (Māori chiefs). Kawakawa pounamu comes shades of rich dark green, often with small dark flecks or inclusions, and is named after the similarly coloured leaves of the kawakawa tree (Piper excelsum). It is the most common variety of pounamu, and the most used in the manufacture of jewellery today. One of its main sources is the Taramakau River on the West Coast. Totoweka is a rare type of kawakawa with small reddish dots or streaks; its name means "weka blood" after the flightless bird Gallirallus australis. Kōkopu pounamu is olive green and speckled with dark spots, reminiscent of the markings of three species of native freshwater fishes in the genus Galaxias that go by that name. Flower jade or picture jade is pounamu with cream, yellow, or brown inclusions, from oxidising or weathering in the surface of the stone. Cracks or fissures in the stone can allow iron impurities to enter, and carvers can then make use of the resulting patterns. Flower jade is best known from the Marsden district near Hokitika. Tangiwai pounamu is translucent like glass, but in a wide range of shades. When viewed against the light it resembles a clear drop of water. The name means "the tears that come from great sorrow", and refers to a Māori legend of a lamenting woman whose tears turned to stone.

Chemistry Jade is formed from two different stones: jadeite and nephrite. Jadeite (sodium aluminium silicate) has interlocking granular crystals, while nephrite (calcium magnesium silicate) has crystals that are interwoven and fibrous. Jadeite is mostly found in Myanmar, while nephrite is found in Europe, British Columbia, Australia, and New Zealand. New Zealand nephrite contains varying amounts of iron, which account for its range of shades, richness of green, and translucency.

Geological formation and location Pounamu is generally found in rivers in specific parts of the South Island as nondescript boulders and stones. Pounamu has been formed in New Zealand in four main locations; the West Coast, Fiordland, western Southland and the Nelson district. It is typically recovered from rivers and beaches where it has been transported to after being eroded from the mountains. The group of rocks where pounamu comes from are called ophiolites. Ophiolites are slices of the deep ocean crust and part of the mantle. When these deep mantle rocks (serpentinite) and crustal rock (mafic igneous rocks) are heated up (metamorphosed) together, pounamu can be formed at their contact. The Dun Mountain Ophiolite Belt has been metamorphosed in western Southland and pounamu from this belt is found along the eastern and northern edge of Fiordland. The Anita Bay Dunite near Milford Sound is a small but highly prized source of pounamu. In the Southern Alps, the Pounamu Ultramafic Belt in the Haast Schist occurs as isolated pods which are eroded and found on West Coast rivers and beaches. One source of īnanga pounamu at the head of Lake Wakatipu is possibly the only jade mining site in the world with Government protection.

Significance to Māori

Pounamu plays a very important role in Māori culture and is a taonga (treasure). It is and has been an important part of trade between the South Island iwi (tribe) Ngāi Tahu and other iwi. Adze blades made from pounamu were desired for carving of wood, and even with the arrival of metal tools pounamu tools were used. These were often reworked into hei tiki (stylised human figures worn as pendants) and other taonga when they were no longer useful for carving wood. After the arrival of Ngāi Tahu in the South Island in the middle of the 18th century, the production of pounamu increased. Pounamu crafting and trade was important to the economy of Ngāi Tahu.

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