Cultural Significance

Pataka: The pataka on McManaway's farm was nominated as a site of cultural significance by Te Runanga o Ngati Hauiti during consultation with the NZHPT as part of the Central Region Pilot Project. The pataka has cultural and traditional value to Te Runanga o Ngati Hauiti and is believed to have been originally located within the vicinity of Te Hou Hou kainga, which was the principal Ngati Hauiti settlement in the 19th century. The pataka was constructed by their tupuna and is the only remaining physical remnant of Ngati Hauiti occupation of the river flats (known generally as 'Te Hou Hou') in the Rata area. John McManaway informed the NZHPT that the pataka is also of cultural and traditional significance to the Taiuru whanau (Ngati Haukaha) who owned the land before it was purchased by John McManaway's great grandfather. Waka: The waka is also of cultural and traditional significance to Te Runanga o Ngati Hauiti as although the historical context cannot be confirmed, it is likely to have been associated with their ancestors' 19th century occupation of this land.

Historic Significance

Historical Significance or Value Pataka: The pataka at McManaway's farm is extremely significant within an historical context as there are very few pataka left standing in New Zealand. A second pataka was situated to the west of McManaway's farm at the former Ngati Hauiti kainga of Pourewa but this was dismantled by Rangipo Mete-Kingi and others in the early 1990s, and the timbers now lie in a paddock adjacent to its former location. Waka: Although the historical context of the waka is unclear, it still has historical significance through its general association with 19th century Maori occupation of the Rata district

Physical Significance

Pataka: The pataka has high architectural value, as it is an extremely rare example of an uncarved pataka. Most pataka had carvings on the maihi and amo and there are very surviving examples of pataka such as this one, which are completely free of carving.

Detail Of Assessed Criteria

(d) The importance of the place to the tangata whenua. The pataka and waka are of considerable importance to Te Runanga o Ngati Hauiti as they are some of the few remaining physical traces of their ancestor's occupation within the Rata area during the nineteenth century. The pataka also has cultural and traditional value to the Taiuru whanau (Ngati Haukaha) who sold the land to John McManaway's great grandfather in the late 19th century. (g) The technical accomplishment or value, or design of the place. The pataka has high architectural value because of its lack of 'design'. The maihi and amo are completely devoid of carving which is very unusual as most known examples of pataka have carvings on the frontage. The craftsmanship of the pataka is also to be noted. Dean Whiting (Pouarahi Whakaora Taonga - Maori Built Heritage Conservator) and Jamie Tuuta (Pouarahi -Maori Heritage Advisor) of the NZHPT Maori Heritage Team both commented on the quality of the adzing during their recent site visit. (j) The importance of identifying rare types of historic places. The pataka on McManaway's farm is extremely rare as there are few pataka still standing today within the New Zealand landscape. This particular pataka has added rarity because it is of a plain design with no carvings on the maihi and amo. (k) The extent to which the place forms part of a wider historical and cultural complex or historical and cultural landscape. As the pataka and waka are not in their original locations, it is the objects rather than the 'place' that form part of a wider historical and cultural complex associated with Ngati Hauiti and Ngati Haukaha occupation of the Rata area during the nineteenth century. Other integral components of this historical and cultural complex include the dismantled pataka at the former site of Pourewa kainga, the nearby Pourewa urupa, the wharepuni at Rata marae (Ngati Hauiti), which was built in 1896, and Terukuatekawau whare at Tahuhu Marae (Ngati Haukaha) that dates to 1897.