Author(s): WJ Phillips (revised by John Huria)

NZ Non Fiction

This encyclopaedia is the fruit of a lifetime's study into pre-Pakeha Maori society, and is a full and authoritative guide to old Maori customs. Drawing on a range of ethnographic research and intimate professional knowledge, Phillipps gathers together in one comprehensive volume an array of subjects including food gathering and preservation, agriculture, buildings, canoe-building and navigation, garment-making, basket and mat-making, plaiting, games and toys, music, carving, weaponry, tattooing and the social rituals of birth, marriage and burial. Sensitively revised and updated for modern readers, and illustrated with almost 200 original line drawings, this is a truly indispensable reference work. First published in 1966; this Revised & Updated edition July 2008.