CHANGES AT THE MUSEUM

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22509, 17 September 1938, Page 9

CHANGES AT THE MUSEUM

REARRANGEMENT OF

EXHIBITS

CULTURE OF PACIFIC

EMPHASIS ON EDUCATIONAL

DISPLAYS

Opportunity has been taken of the closing of the Canterbury Museum for cleaning during the last fortnight to make rearrangements in various departments, and when the museum reopens on Monday the public will be able to see how modern ideas on museum display have been carried out with some of the exhibits.

The most noticeable change has oeen made in the Polynesian, Fijian, and Melanesian sections of the ethnological room. Here a very interesting arrangement has been made by the ethnologist (Mr R. S. Duff), with the aim of giving greater educational value to the exhibits in snowing the various cultures of the Pacific. A large number of the objects formerly exhibited have been stored and the space thus made available has been used to make a display which can be used to give an easily comprehended outline of the culture of the groups of islands concerned.

The method in which the exhibits have been arranged is shown by the display for Polynesia, to which three half cases are devoted. The first section shows the polished stone adzes used by the people in these islands, with a further section showing the adzes fixed to hafts, the display illustrating the tools used in the neolithic period to which the culture belonged. The standard method of obtaining food was by fishing, and the next section illustrates the manner in which fish were caught, with a model of the canoes used and' specimens of the fishhooks.

Apart from fish, the main food in the Polynesian group was taro and kumera. and the next section shows the pounders used in making the poi pudding, and the apparatus for making the kava drink, the bowl and cup. as well as the root itself from which Ihe drink was made. Specimens of bark cloth, with the stencil from which the pattern was made by rubbing, are next shown,. The next section shows ornaments, the outstanding exhibits being the necklaces of imitation tusks made from the teeth nf the sperm whale, from Samoa. Religion is illustrated in the next section, with a display of idols and images. Easter Island Exhibits

A-display of special interest is that shewing specimens of the.-writing on wood from Easter Island. This writing has never been interpreted, and according to Mr Duff, the possibility is that it was developed and used only by the priesthood. The Fijian material culture is shown m one half case and a wall case, and follows similar lines to the display for Polynesia. Here the material culture was, at a higher level, and the exhibition of a bow and of pottery" show examples of arts which were absent in Polynesia.

The Melanesian material culture was the highest of the three groups, and here the presence of a loom among the exhibits shows the knowledge of the art of weaving. This section is arranged similarly to the others. It is shown that the method of fishing was by nets, spears, and kites, rather than by hooks.

Mr Duff said that the Polynesians were the most daring navigators, and in this they had over-reached themselves and become isolated, losing the arts which were possessed by the other groups. They had even ultimately lost the art of navigation itself, by which they, had been able to steer without the compass. The Melanesian group, being nearer Asia, was less isolated from the cultural centres, and arts and crafts were here at th'e highest level. Fiji was half-way between the two in its material, culture.

A very interesting display shows the various objects that wei;e used for money, including feathers, shells, and braids made from the fur of flying foxes. Articles which were difficult to obtain or articles which involved long and difficult work had a value for this purpose. Value to Teachers

Brighter backgrounds have been provided for the wall cases, and the objects displayed show up more clearly. The new displays, for which labels and descriptive matter will be added later, should be of great value to teachers who bring classes to the museum, as the arrangement makes it possible to give an outline of what can be learned in a very short time. During the next fortnight, the wellarranged Carnegie display from Auckland War Memorial Museum, showing Maori craftsmanship, will also be on view. .

There have been fewer rearrangements in the other departments of the museum, but a better display has been made in the mammal room by removing eiome of the more faded specimens, moving the skeletons to the back of the room, and placing • selected mounted specimens in the foreground. The display of New Zealand birds has also , been greatly improved by removing l some of the cases, so that others, which include habitat groups, are more clearly shown up. An interesting addition, according to the curator of the museum (Mr R. A. Falla), is the great ci-ested penguin, which was acquired recently and mounted by the taxidermist (Mr P. J. O'Brien) in the position in which it is about to crouch over the egg for hatching. The egg is shown partly covered by the flap of flesh and feathers which protect it during

hatching while it is held in position by the feet. The museum has now a complete series of soecimens of the penguin, showing the bird when moulting, after moulting, and during hatching.