General Horatio Robley and the patu parāoa

Head of Matauranga Māori Puawai Cairns discusses the significance of a whalebone weapon – a patu parāoa.

A paper label fixed to its surface tells of a fleeting association with an English soldier – General Horatio Gordon Robley. Robley fathered a child in Tauranga with a woman called Harete Mauao. Descendant of General Horatio Robley – Googie Tapsell, recounts what she knew about her great-grandfather.