Evaluating the tangible, acknowledging the intangible : the application of auditing, kaitiakitanga and collection management during the Tairāwhiti museum taonga Māori audit : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Museum Studies at Massey University, Manawatu, New Zealand
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Date
2010
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Massey University
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Abstract
The objective of this dissertation is to reveal how the application of auditing and
holistic collection management practices can bring about tangible and mutually
beneficial outcomes for museums, Māori and taonga Māori collections. The core
research of this dissertation is a case study of the Tairāwhiti Museum Taonga Māori
Audit. This demonstrates the praxis of auditing; the concurrent application of
kaitiakitanga and collection management principles; and the strategic outcomes that
may be achieved when undertaking similar initiatives.
At present the practice and implications of auditing for museums is an underdeveloped
area of enquiry. This dissertation clarifies auditing and its emergence in museum
practice; the current debates surrounding it; and examples of national and international
auditing to place the Tairāwhiti Museum Audit within the broader context of museum
based auditing. The Tairāwhiti Museum Audit demonstrates the rationale,
implementation and potential benefits of auditing as a strategic collection management
tool.
To provide an epistemological framework for the Tairāwhiti Museum Audit the
context of taonga Māori from the Māori worldview is clarified, and an overview of
shifts toward the acknowledgement and application of mātauranga Māori principles in
New Zealand museums is provided. The approach of the Tairāwhiti Museum toward
the collection management of taonga has been influenced by external shifts, but more
often has been progressive in its response toward meeting the expectations of local
Māori and the needs of the taonga Māori collection. The Tairāwhiti Museum Audit is
further evidence of this. The dissertation reveals the relevance of taonga to Māori, and
demonstrates how kaitiakitanga principles can be applied to strategic collection
management initiatives.
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Museum auditing, Maori antiquities, Cultural property, Museum management