Pacific

Hear about tatau (Sāmoan tattooing), weaving in Tokelau, browse our Pacific collections online, and read blogs.

Sāmoa
Sāmoa

Our collections represent stories of Sāmoa and its people. Explore some of our Sāmoan stories about our collections from Apia to Auckland, tatau to travelling umu boxes, headdresses to hip hop, and more.
Tatau: Sāmoan tattoo
Tatau: Sāmoan tattoo

Explore the history of Sāmoan tatau, watch interviews with people talking about what their tatau means to them, and discover objects and photographs within our collections.
Tokelau

Tokelau

Tokelau is in the South Pacific Ocean, about halfway between Hawai‘i and Aotearoa New Zealand. Find out more about Tokelau through videos, blogs, and an activity book.
Quiz: Tongan Language

Quiz: Tongan Language

How’s your basic Tongan? Time to brush up using Tongan objects from Te Papa’s collection. Give it a go and have fiefia (fun)!
George Crummer: Picturing the Cook Islands

George Crummer: Picturing the Cook Islands

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries George Crummer built up a business taking pictures of Cook Islanders and general scene photographs in Rarotonga, Aituaki, and Mangaia.
Cricket, Pacific style

Cricket, Pacific style

Pacific peoples picked up cricket from British colonial settlers and quickly developed their own versions of the game. Indigenous forms of cricket are now played by Pacific communities across the world.
Weaving in Tokelau: Novena’s story

Weaving in Tokelau: Novena’s story

Watch Novena Petelo explain how she learnt traditional Tokelauan weaving techniques from her mother, and hear about some of the tools she uses in her practice.
Countering stereotypes through co-collecting with Tongan youth

Countering stereotypes through co-collecting with Tongan youth

As part of our co-collecting initiative with the Tongan community, students have been considering what truly represents them and counters stereotypical representations. Curator Pacific Art, Nina Tonga highlights some of the students and their selected objects.
Watch: Cook Islands Tīvaevae, stitched with love

Watch: Cook Islands Tīvaevae, stitched with love

Discover the art of tīvaevae (quilting) with Cook Islands women from the Wellington region.

Share

Pacific

Browse the collections from the Society Islands

Browse the collections from Sāmoa

Browse the collections from Fiji

Browse the collections from Tonga

Browse the collections from the Cook Islands

Pacific cultures books

Sāmoa

Tatau: Sāmoan tattoo

Tokelau

Quiz: Tongan Language

George Crummer: Picturing the Cook Islands

Cricket, Pacific style

Weaving in Tokelau: Novena’s story

Countering stereotypes through co-collecting with Tongan youth

Watch: Cook Islands Tīvaevae, stitched with love