Maori taiaha demonstration

Once inside the Pah, the visiting "chief" and his family were seated at the front. The Maori warrios presented a lecture and demonstration of the use of the taiaha (please don&call it a spear...it&uses as a tool and cultural artifact are much more than a weapon). It is said that before the pakeha (white man) came to Aotearoha (Land of the Long White Cloud or New Zealand), the Maori elders would also use the taiaha to rest their chins as they stood to talk with other elders of the tribe. Imagine the height of the original Maoris who stood taller than their taiaha.