A representation of an admission ticket, with a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) on it and the words "Admit One".

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Collage: A humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), and the letter "f".

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Text: Whales Tohorā – The Exhibition. March 2 – September 3, 2012. Image: A humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae).

© Canadian Museum of Nature, © iStockphoto.com/Josh Friedman

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Whales Tohorā

The Exhibition

March 2 – September 3

 

About the exhibition: Highly interactive and theatrical, this special exhibition will draw you into the underwater world of whales. Explore their amazing biology and ways of life, and discover how people (especially the Māori) connect with them.

Tickets: Prices and package deals.

Buy your tickets online.

Plan your visit: Hours, directions, parking, what's on, and more.

Note: No photography in this exhibition at the request of the lending institution, the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

 

  • View of the two articulated sperm-whale (Physeter catodon) skeletons in the exhibition.

    © Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, 2008

    More than just specimens: It's not only the impressive size (17.8 m and 9.8 m) of these sperm-whale (Physeter catodon) skeletons that make them the centrepiece of the exhibition. The general significance of whales in Maori culture is reflected in the exhibition, but some New Zealand Māori tribes have relationships with these particular skeletons.

  • A girl compares her hand with life-sized X-rays of a humpback whale flipper and a human hand in the exhibition.

    © Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, 2008

    Exploring similarities and evolutionary adaptations.

  • An engraving of a traditionally dressed Māori man.

    © Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, 2007

    A 1773 portrait of a richly dressed Māori man wearing a rei puta pendant made of whale bone or tooth.

  • A common dolphin leaping from the water.

    © Dr Ingrid Visser, Orca Research Trust

    When dolphins leap from the water like this, it's called "porpoising".

  • A humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae).

    © Dr Ingrid Visser, Orca Research Trust

    A humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae).

  • Carved and painted barge boards.

    © Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, 2008; reproduced with the generous support of Ngäti Konohi, 2007

    A stylised model of the barge boards (maihi) from Whitireia meeting house in Whangara, New Zealand. The central carved figure (tekoteko) is Paikea, the famous whale-riding ancestor of the local tribe.

 

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