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Lot Essay
Les repose-pieds sculptés, appelés teka, étaient attachés à de longs outils (ko) utilisés pour piocher la terre. Tandis que pour beaucoup de teka la décoration était réduite au minimum, les plus rares étaient ornés d’une figure humaine sculptée en volume, somptueusement décorée, incarnant un ancêtre important qui favorisait la culture agricole. Ces teka étaient des objets cérémoniels essentiels, utilisés par les tohungas (prêtres) pour invoquer l’aide des dieux, Rongo, le dieu de l’agriculture, et Pani, la déesse qui amena le kumara (patate douce) dans ce monde.
Carved footrests for digging, called teka, were lashed to long paddle-shaped cultivating implements called ko for use in actual planting and ceremonies connected to planting-related labor. While on many teka decoration was kept to a minimum, some are elaborate with the human figure neatly carved in full volume and with lavish surface decoration. In these cases the carving on the step, which identifies the clan of the owner, embodies an important ancestor who assists with the agricultural work. These teka were significant ceremonial items used by the tohungas (priests) when turning the first piece of ground and planting a special plot invoking the aid of the gods, Rongo, the god of agriculture, and Pani, the goddess who brought the kumara to this world.
Carved footrests for digging, called teka, were lashed to long paddle-shaped cultivating implements called ko for use in actual planting and ceremonies connected to planting-related labor. While on many teka decoration was kept to a minimum, some are elaborate with the human figure neatly carved in full volume and with lavish surface decoration. In these cases the carving on the step, which identifies the clan of the owner, embodies an important ancestor who assists with the agricultural work. These teka were significant ceremonial items used by the tohungas (priests) when turning the first piece of ground and planting a special plot invoking the aid of the gods, Rongo, the god of agriculture, and Pani, the goddess who brought the kumara to this world.