When the early settlers arrived in New Zealand and observed the beautiful stone the Maoris were using primarily for making tools, they aptly labelled it “greenstone”.

Pounamu is the Maori name for New Zealand Greenstone, which is essentially nephrite jade, though also including the less common bowenite. Both rocks are formed deep within the Earth’s crust and are rarer than gold. During the formation of the mountains of the South Island over the last two million years, Pounamu was raised to the earth’s surface, then eroded by the action of streams, rivers and glaciers. 

Nephrite Jade is one of the two types of Jade, the other is Jadeite (.Chinese jade). NZ has some of the finest nephrite Jade in the world, it contains small amounts of iron and chromium which contribute to the depth of its colour.  

Nephrite Jade is found in commercial quantites in only a few places in the world, within New Zealand it is only found in the South Island. For this reason the island was originally named Te Wāhi Pounamu (the place of pounamu), but over time this name changed to Te Wai Pounamu (the greenstone waters). All pounamu is sourced from riverbeds and boulders in the South Island, mainly on the West Coast.

Pounamu has special significance for the Maori. Due to its strength, and resilience as well as its aesthetic qualities it was considered a highly treasured stone and used for making  jewellry and ornaments and more importantly its extreme hardness and durability rendered it an excellent material for constructing weapons and tools used for carving, cutting and building, the early Azdes (toki) tools for e.g were lashed to a wooden handle and used to make canoes and cut down trees etc..

Pounamu holds deep spiritual significance in Maori life and culture. It is considered to have mana (status) and to be tapu (sacred). The Maori believe that Pounamu absorbs the 'mana' or spiritual power of its wearer, and the beautiful designs carved in pounamu which have their own distinct meaning, possess attributes such as strength, courage and determination.

Carving the Jade demands extensive knowledge, experience and finesse. The large Greenstone proudly displayed by Graeme above, is a rare Nephrite Jade stone which was found in Kumara on the West Coast. It is considered a “Taonga” (treasure) by the Maori, weighing around 14kg. It is depicted just as it was found, polished by nature through process of erosion.