Greenstone Carving: Techniques and Concepts in Pounamu

This concise guide to the art of greenstone carving, out of print for the past 20 years, returns in a smartly designed, fully illustrated new edition.

Greenstone Carving takes readers from the origins of pounamu/greenstone through the basics of the artform — design, tools and techniques, different stone types and potential projects.

Len Gale draws on his background as a craftsman and teacher explain popular Māori designs like hei tiki, toki, pekapeka, mere and patu. The text is accompanied by detailed drawings and photos, including images of superb finished works from the Moko Pounamu studio, Ōtautahi/Christchurch.

This new book joins an expanding range of Māori craft books from Oratia, including Te Whatu Tāniko and Te Toi Whakairo.