Martha King (After), Day & Haghe (Lithographer)

The Rata in Flower

The Rata in Flower by Martha King, Day & Haghe

Artwork Detail

'This is the monarch of the New Zealand forest, generally as large as the largest English oaks. It is originally a parasite, winding several coils round other trees until it has killed them and taken their place. The dead tree gradually rots, thus leaving the trunk of the rata hollow. In the end of the summer, each twig is covered with this flower, so that the whole forest bears a crimson tinge. This tree resembles the oak in its gnarled limbs, and is therefore much sought after by ship-builders for the knees and timbers of their vessels.' (Edward Jerningham Wakefield, Illustrations to Adventure in New Zealand from 1839 to 1844; with some account of the beginning of British colonization of the islands. Plate XIV, no.2).

Title
The Rata in Flower
Artist/creator
Martha King, Day & Haghe
Production date
1845
Medium
hand-coloured lithograph
Dimensions
375 x 277 mm
Credit line
Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, purchased with funds from the M A Serra Trust, 1987
Accession no
1987/16/15
Other ID
1987/16/15/C
Copyright
No known copyright restrictions
Department
New Zealand Art
Display status
Not on display

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