A portrait Ngāti Manawa tohunga (or priest) Wharekauri Tahuna by Charles Fredrick Goldie has sold at auction for just over $3.75 million dollars.
It's a record-setting sale, and it's sparked discussions around the value of our Māori taonga.
While some would mark the sale as a remarkable feat, others are suggesting we need to encourage deeper understanding of the value of our taonga beyond its price tag.
One of those people is Hemopereki Simon, research fellow at Waikato University.
Wharekauri Tahuna. Photo: International Art Centre Photo:
