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Lot 56
PLEASE NOTE: INTERNET BIDDING FOR THIS LOT IS AVAILABLE ONLY VIA ROSEBERYS LIVE. ALL BIDDING ON THIS LOT IS SUBJECT TO A DEPOSIT WHICH MUST BE MADE BY 1700BST ON 1 OCTOBER. CONTACT CLIENT SERVICES FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER TO BIDA pair of rare extinct taxidermy New Zealand Huia birds (Heteralocha acutirostris), late 19th century, comprising full mount adults, the female perched above the male on a tree branch, on a naturalistic ebonised base with soil and grass, within a later glass dome, approx. 57cm high, 40cm wide, 32cm deep overall Provenance: Property of a Gentleman. Roseberys acknowledge the cultural and spiritual significance of the huia to Ngāti Huia, and to Aotearoa (New Zealand).We are grateful to Errol Fuller, author of Extinct Birds, Oxford University Press, 2000, and Barry Williams, author of The Last Huia, to be published later this year, for their help with authentication. Footnotes: Note: The extinct huia bird was a striking, large songbird native to the North Island of New Zealand, with deep metallic, bluish-black plumage, orange wattles and long white-tipped tail feathers. The female and male Huia had dramatically different bill sizes and shapes; the female beak being long, slender and curved while the male beak was stouter and shorter. The male used its shorter bill as an axe to dig into decaying wood to extract huhu larvae as well as other insects, while the female with its longer decurved bill could extract larvae from more solid wood. The huia bird was already a rare species before the arrival of Europeans to New Zealand. They were a sacred bird to the Māori, who prized the tail feathers and wore them as a mark of status. Often worn in the hair by Māori of rank, the twelve unique black and white-tipped tail feathers of the huia represented chieftainship (Rangatiratanga). The feathers were also gifted or traded between iwi (people) for other taonga (treasures) to create and maintain important tribal relationships. They were similarly given to non-Māori as a sign of respect and acknowledgement. Furthermore, the tail plumes became fashionable in Britain after the Duke of York was photographed wearing one during a 1901 visit to New Zealand which sparked a dramatic rise in the capture and hunting of the species.The logging and burning of native forests by European settlers in the nineteenth century to make way for farming in the lowlands of the North Island was also a major contributing factor to the decline in population and ultimate extinction of huia birds.The last accepted sighting was in 1907, but it is likely that a few huia birds persisted as late as the 1920s.Condition Report: In overall good condition. Has been recently sympathetically restored, with the wattles repainted and a repaired break to the right leg of the male. The plumage with some fading overall, to be expected with age and exposure to sunlight. One tail feather of the male, on the right side, is a lighter colour than the others and may possibly not be original to the bird although is from a huia bird. Some minor ruffling to the feathers on both birds. While the dome and groundwork are later, the branches are most likely from the original taxidermy case that would have housed these birds. It is possible that they were originally part of a larger taxidermy display.
Lot 578
Three table lighters, comprising a Lancel Art Deco black enamel and chrome table lighter, 10cm high, a silver plated lighter stamped DP, bearing the initials ES, presentation for the son of a president 1954, 10cm high, and a Floating chrome cased table lighter, with engine turned decoration, 11cm high. (3)
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44568 item(s)/page