Age Concern Wellington is proud to collaborate with Te Papa in offering unique opportunities for our social connection group participants to connect with Pacific heritage. On two recent occasions, Te Papa welcomed groups made up of participants from some of Age Concern’s regular programmes for a very special experience.
The visits began in a private room at Te Papa, where rare and significant objects from the Pacific collections were brought out and carefully laid before the seniors. While Curators and Collection Managers were present, they invited participants – many of whom have deep cultural knowledge –to share their own insights.
This created moments of profound learning and exchange. One senior, for example, vividly described how a chief’s bird-snaring stool would have been used, including the chants that would traditionally be spoken beforehand. The Chief’s bird-snaring stool is called Seu lupe (seu: snare or net and lupe: pigeon) in Samoan). The chief would sit quietly on the stool up in a camouflaged tree house and throw a net over the birds. The image is now used as a proverb in chiefly speeches as a metaphor for leadership, agility and wisdom.
Such first-hand knowledge added layers of understanding beyond what museum records alone can capture.
After this private session, participants were taken on a short guided tour of Te Papa’s Pacific collections and treated to refreshments.
This collaboration illustrates the strength of mahi tahi working in partnership: Te Papa provides curatorial support and access to its collections, while Age Concern brings participants whose lived experience and cultural knowledge enrich the museum’s work. It is a testament to the great value both organisations place on recognising and honouring seniors’ expertise.
Age Concern is grateful to Te Papa for making space for these important voices, and looks forward to continuing this collaboration.