Kupe Group

1940

William Thomas Trethewey

Hidden (in storage)

Type

  • Sculpture

Medium

  • Plaster

Trethewey, William Thomas, 1892-1956. Sculpture by William Trethewey at the Centennial Exhibition, Rongotai, Wellington, depicting Kupe, his wife, and a tohunga. Deste, Eileen, 1909-1986 :Collection of prints and negatives. Ref: 1/2-004298-F. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. /records/23161462

1999–Current

Held in storage by Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand, Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington.

1940–1999

In the foyer of Wellington Railway Station, Bunny Street, CBD, Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington

1940–1940

1940 Centennial Exhibition, Rongotai, Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington

Artists

Description

The statue depicts Kupe, the legendary Maori discoverer of New Zealand, his wife Hine Te Aparangi and tohunga (ritual expert) Peka-Hourangi. It is the sole remant of a commission for the 1940 New Zealand Centennial Exhibition.

Created out of plaster, the sculpture stood for many years in the entrance hall of the Wellington Railway Station but is now in storage at Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand. In 1999 a replica was cast in bronze and unveiled on the Wellington waterfront in 2000.