Of Figureheads and Good Fortune

This fine female figurehead from the barque Raupo is typical of 19th century clipper ships whose bows were often adorned with elaborate carvings, which served as both identifier and as a talisman for good fortune.

Across cultures and centuries practices of decorating a vessel served multiple symbolic, patriotic and religious purposes. From as early as 3000 BC Egyptian barges were painted with the protective 'Eye of Horus’, the bows of Greek and Phoenician galleons also sported pairs of painted eyes, or ferocious boars heads or swift horses. Roman warships (naves longae in Latin, from whence the English word navy derives) featured valourous centurions. On Viking longships, through AD 800-1100, menacing dragons or serpents snarled from high prows. And in the mid 18th-19th centuries Burmese royal barges carried figureheads of important mythical characters.

Throughout Polynesia and in Aotearoa New Zealand, waka hourua (ocean going canoes), waka ama (outrigger canoes) and waka taua (war canoes) had intricate, perforated, spiral carvings supporting a carved tauihu (prow). On smaller fishing vessels called waka tētē (or waka pakoko) figureheads often took the form of a stylised face with a protruding tongue. In 2011 remains of a carved waka found near the Anaweka Estuary in the Tasman District were radiocarbon dated to about 1400.

In the 17th and 18th centuries English vessels carried figureheads representing saints, historical figures, a ship's owner or royal patron, naval leaders, or emblematic animals such as unicorns and lions. They served as both signifiers of origin and demonstrations of financial and imperial might. However the weight of these large wooden carvings mounted on the tip of the hull could cause problems with a ship's manoeuvrability. A move to three quarter rather than full sized figures made of lighter woods like pine, rather than the oak traditionally used, went some way to addressing that issue.

With the burgeoning of merchant sailing in the 1850s, the structure of the new clipper ships' bows allowed the mounting of full size figureheads. The vast majority were female figures – they not only symbolically represented the ‘eyes’ of the ship watching out for the perils of the wide ocean, but also the intrinsic spirit of the vessel.

In maritime tradition ships had long been referred to as 'she' in reference to womens' beauty, grace and allure reflected in a vessel's elegant curves and movements, and to represent the powers of nurturing, protection and support. Many figureheads were bare breasted to emphasise these feminine qualities. There is a certain irony that maritime superstition had it that a woman on board was unlucky, causing distraction, and even inciting 'Mother Nature' to 'take revenge'. Ordinary seaman, working in what was a truly perilous profession, embraced these long-held traditions and superstitions. Men grew to love their ships and the figurehead particularly was something they were proud to take care of.

As to the Raupo's history, at the time of her construction in 1876 by John Key and Sons at Abden shipyard in Dundee, Scotland, the 682 tonne iron-hulled barque was registered as the Peru. Purchased by J J Craig in 1907 for moving cargo on the shipping route between Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia, she was renamed Louisa Craig. In 1916 her name and ownership changed again when she was bought by George Scales of Wellington, renamed Raupo, and used to ply the Tasman transporting timber and coal. She also made five voyages to San Francisco carrying raupō (flax), hemp and kauri gum, returning with a hold full of cased oil.

In 1922 the Canterbury Steam Navigation Company bought the Raupo and towed her to Whakaraupō Lyttelton Harbour, where she spent her last years in use as a coal hulk. In 1937 she was stripped down to the waterline and beached at the 'ships' graveyard' off Ōtamahua Quail Island. Between 1902 and 1953 a total of 13 vessels were laid to rest there, safely out of the way of the harbour's busy navigation channels. Where the Raupo’s dark-haired figurehead ended up is unknown, however Te Ūaka's collection holds two other fine examples – a crowned woman garbed in blue from a French vessel and a British naval gentleman resplendent with brass buttons and epaulettes.