Art & creativity  |  12 Nov 2025

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For the first time since their signing in the mid-1800s, the 10 Ngāi Tahu land sale purchase deeds will be on display together.

This landmark exhibition at Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū – developed in partnership with the Ngāi Tahu Archive – illuminates the promises made and the injustices wrought upon Ngāi Tahu by the Crown during a critical period in Aotearoa New Zealand’s history. 

Between 1844 and 1864, most of Te Waipounamu was ‘sold’ to the Crown for tiny sums in dubious negotiations characterised by threats, time pressure, and ambiguous land boundaries. 

Kā Whakatauraki: The Promises will open as part of a refresh of the major collection exhibition He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil which opened in August last year. 

Curator of the exhibition, Ngāi Tahu Archive’s principal advisor Helen Brown, says that when the opportunity arose to contribute to He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil, the land sale purchase deeds immediately came to mind. 

Ngāi Tahu Deeds Map c.1986. Annotated printed topographic map on laminated paper with calico backing. On loan from Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. Ngaitahu Maori Trust Board Collection, Ngāi Tahu Archiv

“The timing of this opportunity coincided with discussions between Te Pae Kōrako (the Ngāi Tahu Archive Advisory Committee) and Archives New Zealand regarding the possibility of returning the deeds to the Ngāi Tahu takiwā, bringing them south from Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington to the Archives New Zealand building in Ōtautahi.  He Kapuka Oneone presented the perfect setting for display of the documents at the heart of an exhibition focused on whenua, land. The deeds provide important context for the wider show, and especially the works by Ngāi Tahu artists.

“Many Ngāi Tahu are familiar with the deeds. We’ve lived with their legacy, and we understand their significance. They were the focal point of Te Kerēme, the 150-year campaign by Ngāi Tahu for justice. The documents clearly articulate the Crown’s promises and point to its consequent failure to fulfil its contractual obligations.  

“It’s staggering to realise that these transactions amounted to the equivalent of between one cent and $2.20 an acre in today’s money. The figures lay bare the Crown’s miserly approach to the land purchases, and the scale of dispossession Ngāi Tahu endured. In just two decades 34.5 million acres of land was lost.” 

Christchurch Art Gallery curator Māori Chloe Cull says several taoka will also be on display – each relating to the land sales and the subsequent Ngāi Tahu Claim – Te Kerēme.

“Alongside the deeds themselves we’ll be showing the Shortland Pounamu, which were gifted to Ngāi Tahu by the Crown on the occasion of the signing of the Ngāi Tahu Deed of Settlement in 1997. The gift marked the significance of the settlement of Te Kerēme after nearly 150 years of campaigning by Ngāi Tahu. 

“We’ll also be displaying the huge, annotated map of Te Waipounamu that was displayed during the Ngāi Tahu Waitangi Tribunal hearings of the late 1980s. This map travelled extensively around the motu – rolled up and tied to the roof rack of the Trust Board car. 

“It’s so meaningful to bring these documents, maps and taoka into the He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil exhibition, which includes many powerful artworks responding to the history of colonisation in this country. Kā Whakatauraki: The Promises will help visitors understand so much more about the other artworks on display.” Cull says. 

Kā Whakatauraki: The Promises opens on 14 November and will stay in place until He Kapuka Oneone – A Handful of Soil closes in February 2027. 

On Wednesday 28 February 2026 at 6pm Helen Brown will be diving deeper into some of the stories associated with the deeds in a lecture at Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū. Visit our website for further details. 

Port Levy Block, Banks Peninsula, New Zealand, 1849. Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Ōtautahi Christchurch. ABWN-W5279 – CAN 2 (R12153210)