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Colenso William 1881. On the fine perception of colours possessed by the ancient Māoris. Transactions of the New Zealand Institute 14: 50-76

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Colour sense of Māori finely tuned. Natural objects, phenomena (e.g. fish shoals, flaxes, weather patterns) distinguished by their hue. Māori, for example, distinguished various flesh tints of different kinds of kūmara and taro when cooked, and had words for the various ripening phases of karaka and kahikatea berries. Favourite colours and use of colour described (e.g. in distinguishing forest trees, in weaving). Dyeing processes described. Description of materials used in house built for Colenso by master craftsmen. Appendix gives a paradigm of the word whero (red).

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On the fine perception of colours possessed by the ancient Māoris

1881
Colenso William
Transactions of the New Zealand Institute
14
50
76

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1566d846-1fa4-41cd-be23-0e6ec1bb8b5a
reference
12 June 2007
22 June 2020
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