Scottish Curators Lose Their Heads

From The Scotsman of Nov. 15, 2005:

Maori heads set for return to homeland

SCOTT MACNAB

THREE preserved Maori heads will be returned to New Zealand after decades in a Glasgow museum.

The heads are believed to have belonged to Maori chiefs killed in battle in the 19th century. Together with a thigh bone, they were accepted in Glasgow by a party from Wellington's Te Papa Tongarewa museum, and will return to their homeland at the weekend.

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James Te Puni, of the museum, said yesterday: "These are the remains of the dead ancestors of someone. They will be someone's great-great-grandfather back in New Zealand, so it's important that they be returned home."

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