Jacob William Heberley (Hākopa Hēperi) | Carver

Jacob was the sixth child of James ‘Worser’ Heberley and his wife Te Wai (also known as Māta Te Naihi), of the Puketapu people of Te Āti Awa. James and Te Wai’s first three children were baptised at Cloudy Bay by Samuel Ironside on 13^th December 1841, the same day he married James Heberley and Te Wai. Jacob (also known as Hākopa Hēperi) was born in 1849 and grew up in Queen Charlotte Sound. He moved to Wellington as a young man and began his career in carving. He was apparently self-taught.

In 1877, Jacob married Annie McLachlan and together they had eight children. Two nephews joined their household in 1889. Thomas and Herbert became carvers under Jacob’s tutelage. Herbert later carved the meeting house Whatu Tamainupō for Ngāti Whātua. Thomas went on to become the Māori carver at the Dominion Museum and was responsible for many carvings now held in several New Zealand museums.

Jacob’s work mostly comprised non-functional replicas and models of traditional artefacts. He also carved walking sticks, containers and picture frames. ‘He was apparently almost totally immersed in a European-dominated art market in which his Māori family and associates were very minor participants’. (Te Ara)

The governor Lord Ranfurly and his wife were among his patrons. Other collectors of his work were Alexander Turnbull, Walter Buller, Richard Seddon, Rober Stout, Julius Vogel and Joseph Ward. Government departments would commission his work as gifts for distinguished visitors. Two such works were a carved model of a pātaka presented to the Duchess of Cornwall and York (later Queen Mary) during her visit to New Zealand with the Duke in 1901. It was presented  by the Women of the City and Suburbs of Wellington. The other was the frame of an illuminated address presented by Richard Seddon on behalf of the people of New Zealand to King Edward VII on his coronation in 1902.

It is not known how well Jacob was paid for his commissions. He had other  jobs to supplement his income but was never very wealthy. The family lived primarily in Richmond Street, Petone, but towards the end of his life they moved to Ohiro Road in Brooklyn. He died on 28 June 1906 after a long illness, and was buried at Karori Cemetery. Annie died in 1920 and was buried with him. They share an unmarked plot in the Church of England section. Their daughter, Myrtle Mawkes, died in 1921 and was the last interment in this plot.

From Te Ara:

‘Beyond his own descendants, Jacob Heberley is not widely known as a tribal carver of Te Āti Awa. His art fulfilled its most significant role in the historical context of New Zealand as a developing nation striving to find a distinctive identity. Thanks largely to his skill and the prominence of his art in official circles, Māori carvings became accepted as a powerful symbol of the new nation, serving as appropriate gifts in the political, sporting and cultural scenes both locally and internationally.’

Plot: *Ch Eng/X/166

By Julia Kennedy

References

https://teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/2h26/heberley-jacob-william

(1906, June 29), ‘Personal Matters’, Wairarapa Daily Times, p5