Location: South Australian Museum, North Foyer on Kaurna Country
Date: Tuesday 2 September 2025
Time: From 10am

Members of the public are invited to join the Māori community from both Aotearoa and Australia, descendants of Karaitiana Takamoana and Kaurna representatives at the South Australian Museum for an emotional poroporoaki (farewell ceremony), as the pou begin their journey home.

The South Australian Museum has cared for these Māori pou since 1891. Now, more than a century later, they are returning home. The return of these pou signals more than physical repatriation; it is an act of restoration, a healing of relationships fractured by colonisation.

This repatriation has been made possible through the enduring efforts of many in the Māori community, including former Otago Museum curator Dimitri Anson. The Tamatea Pōkai Whenua cultural corporation acknowledges and deeply appreciates the Museum’s commitment to honouring cultural heritage and fostering reconciliation.

The poroporoaki will include song, dance and prayer, along with a Māori haka as the pou leave the museum through the front door.

Please note that no flash photography is permitted at the South Australian Museum.

If you have mixed feelings about the pou leaving Adelaide, you can talk with:

He Waka Eke Noa SA Maori Youth Suicide Prevention Network is not a crisis service but is available for kōrero [discussion] and tautoko [support]. He Waka Eke Noa can be contacted at hewakaekenoaspnetwork@gmail.com

Find out more about the Māori pou.