silverferngallery
Hand Carved Taniwha Panel - by Gary Holder
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$12,000.00 NZD
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NZ Kauri wood.
Handcarved by Gary Holder - Maniapoto Iwi.
Gary carved only a few panels of this size in his lifetime.
76cm x 25cm x 5cm
Gary was inspired by a panel in his local marae for this carving. He possibly sketched it from memory one day, and the original sketch is attached to the back of the carving. The marae was built in the 1800’s. It is a taniwha, or marakihau, so it is a kaitiaki (guardian). A river guardian/protector, which sucked fish up through a mouth tube, and the carving on the body is pataki (flounder fish pattern) with haehae lines.
Gary’s great grandfather, Alexander Bell, was the first white man to arrive in the King Country in New Zealand. He married Katerina Te Waihanea and they had 21 children. (Yes - 21!)
They can trace their ancestry back to 1350AD. Their ancestors arrived in the Te Arawa waka (canoe).
Gary started carving full time in 1967, and sadly passed away in 2019.
