Exquisite Māori Jade Carving

... capture the very essence

Hold New Zealand's breath-taking beauty in your hands.

A Māori jade carving. Genuine. Exclusive.

The forms and spirit of the land captured by the country's finest artists.

Maori Jade Carving

New Zealand needs to be shared. The grandeur, the scale, the intricate forms of the fern frond. All this, captured in the finest jade (greenstone), pearl and bone carvings from highly skilled and renowned local artists.

Māori jade carvings and artwork have a very special feel about them, unlike anything else you will ever experience.

The beauty of jade is unsurpassed with its semi-translucent look and swirls of green that seem to float deep within the stone. Hold a jade carving up to the light and you will truly be looking into another world.

Hold it in your hand or against your skin and it will transform into a dark green, almost black, with subtle glimpses of its secret inner life appearing as it moves. Nephrite jade naturally ranges in colour from a very pale green to a very dark, almost black, jade.

Some of these carvings are large at around 100mm long (4 inches) long while most average about 50mm (2 inches) in length or less.

Many of these pieces are carved from New Zealand jade or Pounamu; which is also often known locally as Greenstone. Pounamu is only found on the rugged west coast of the South Island.

Every experience increases in value if it's shared with friends. Every Māori jade carving has a very special meaning or story behind its design.

And in that meaning is the importance of sharing. Passing on the oral traditions of the Māori and their respect for, and reverence of, nature.

The pre-European Māori had no written language. So tribal history and the stories of the gods were kept using many forms of fine arts and crafts. Pendants, jewelry and various tools such as needles, spear tips and fish hooks fashioned through jade carving developed into a fine art form. Great importance being placed on every piece, many of which took years to make using stone tools.

These Māori arts and crafts ranged from basket and cloth weaving to complex wood, bone, shell and Māori jade carving containing the essential elements necessary to preserve the tribal histories.

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