Pakohe Toki

Pakohe is a highly hardened mudstone made up of a mixture of clay and silt-sized particles. It is the basement rock of Aotearoa and was an important rock type for Māori. Earliest Maori communities recognised its superior qualities of hardness, strength, and ability to hold a sharpened edge, ideal for making tools.  Even though the rock was hard it was still able to be worked, re-shaped, sharpened and smoothed which made it an ideal tool for Maori with limited resources. Pakohe is particularly associated with Ngati Kuia of the Nelson-Marlborough region in Aotearoa.

Toki were one of the most important tools for Māori and were used for any number of everyday jobs such as cutting down trees, carving out waka, digging ground, Moa hunting and food preparations. 

Toki had to be strong to endure the cutting and scraping motions of its use it became a symbol of strength(particularly in times of adversity), courage and fortitude. 

Toki were also worn by elders as a symbol of power, wisdom and authority.

• Pakohe from Te Tau Ihu
• 62mm length x 31mm width
• One of a kind, taonga by Timoti

💚Now every taonga you purchase helps us to carve a taonga for EVERY tamariki in care in Aotearoa. You can read more about our Tū Māia project here. Ngā mihi mahana for your support of this kaupapa!💚