Rare Huia Feather Now on Display at the Church History Museum in Hamilton

A rare tail feather of the extinct huia bird was recently gifted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is now on display in the museum at the Matthew Cowley Pacific Church History Centre.

The feather was originally given in the late 1920s to Ariel and Artemesia Ballif who served as teacher and the last principal of the Māori Agricultural College near Hastings from 1927–1930. They later served as New Zealand Mission president and companion from 1955–1958.

Melanie Riwai-Couch, Pacific Area manager for Church History explained, “The Ballif family have been extremely generous enabling the return of this taonga (treasure) to Aotearoa. The fact that this huia feather was given to the Balliffs is a reflection of the exceptionally high regard they were held in by Māori Saints here in Aotearoa New Zealand”.

The feather was found inside a photo album that the Ballif family donated to the Church for digitising in 2022. The family then donated the feather in 2023; it underwent conservation treatment in Salt Lake City before being repatriated to Aotearoa.

Huia feathers are extremely rare and are a revered treasure for Māori people. They symbolise leadership and mana. The feathers from the tail of the huia are particularly prized and were worn in the hair or around the neck by both men and women. The huia bird became extinct in 1919, increasing the value of these feathers as prized adornments and tokens of respect.

The feather is on display alongside a Māori Agricultural College cap and blazer that were also recently acquired by the Church. These items were unveiled in a ceremony attended by about 100 people by the Pacific Area President and General Authority Seventy, Elder Peter F. Meurs.

Through their mission assignments Ariel and Artemesia Ballif had relationships with many of the significant Māori leaders of the early Church in Aotearoa. Ariel Ballif baptised Sid Crawford who would go on to become president of the Hawkes Bay Stake and later served as patriarch. Other notables include: Kaumātua Te Rangikawea Puriri; Jimmy Southon who was the first president of the Hawkes Bay Stake; Eriata Nopera, who was the first Māori to be the president of a Church district; Stuart Meha who assisted with the re-translation of the Book of Mormon into the Māori language; Ngā Puhi tribal leader Hohepa Heperi who served as a Māori high priest proselyting across New Zealand and providing leadership in the absence of American missionaries during World War I; and James Elkington who fulfilled many positions of responsibility in the Church. It is possible the feather was gifted to the Ballifs by one of these families.

The Pacific Church History Museum is free to visit and located in the Wendell B. Mendenhall Building, 465 Tuhikaramea Road, Temple View Hamilton. Opening hours are Tuesday to Saturday, 10am to 4pm daily.