Every Friday morning, a group of us meets deep within the Library stacks to examine the Library’s ‘realia’ collection and choose items for rehousing. Each time, without fail, we are amazed at what we see: jewellery encrusted with colourful gems, a small bush candle-box with the tiniest bit of wax left, or Captain Cook’s ditty box, carved by his sailors after his death, containing a lock of his hair.

During the year we have rehoused 440 of the Library’s most valuable objects, many of which were donated by Sir William Dixson as part of his large bequest to the Library in 1952. Dixson’s eclectic taste translated into an extraordinary collection of books, manuscripts, coins, pictures, maps and relics from across the globe. His diverse interests — with a strong focus on Australiana, but covering subjects such as exploration, geography, natural history and Pacific history — saw one especially interesting object reach my workbench for rehousing.

Inside an old wooden crate, with an Angus & Robertson label and assorted packing material, lay a carved bust of a heavily tattooed Maori male with strong features and a mesmerising stare. Catalogued as Male Maori Head, dated c. 1880, the bust is made from a single large piece of kauri gum resin.

Created as a by-product of the kauri gum trade, a huge industry that thrived in New Zealand from the 1850s to the 1950s, the bust was probably carved by European gum-diggers from resin that oozed from the kauri trees. Resin carvings were produced as tourist pieces, mementoes and prizes in fairs.

While resin carving was common throughout the northern parts of the north island, pieces as large as this one are rare. Busts were often made in a mould, with the hair and torso built up using softened resin. Details were added by painting, carving and, because Kauri gum has a low melting point, impressing with heated metal tools. The carvings often include authentic depictions of the tattoos of the individual represented.

Once the gum has hardened and set, it becomes brittle and is easily damaged. This bust has a crack running through the back of the neck, a large section missing on the base and small pieces broken off in other places. The weight of the Maori head made its rehousing a challenge. A box was made to fit the bust, using archival corrugated board reinforced with a variety of supports to aid stability while enabling access for clients and staff.

A number of questions about the Maori head remain unanswered. Is it a true representation of an individual and, if so, who was he?

We welcomed additional information on this piece and thank our colleagues Colin McGregor, Dion Peita and Logan Metcalfe from the Australian Museum, Sheri O’Neill from the Kauri Museum and Conservator Anne Cummings for their invaluable responses to our questions.