Do you remember flying a kite when you were a child? The joy of having something wriggling on the end of the line as if it was really alive and you being in charge as it darted around the sky

Some early visitors to New Zealand mistakenly thought that Europeans had introduced kites here. The tradition goes well back into the mist of time when Maui - perhaps the greatest kite flyer ever, soared his kite through the ocean winds of his homeland. When the great migration canoes of the Maori arrived in Aotearoa the knowledge of kiteflying came with them. Materials from indigenous plants were adapted to construct a wide range of shapes and sizes of kites, many with specific names and uses.

The origin of kite flying was firmly attributed to the gods, in particular to Rongo and Tane, the latter at times being pictured as a kite. Throughout Polynesia, kiteflying was closely associated with Tawhaki, an ancestor who figures in many of the island genealogies. With the decline of the various sky cults and the fading of the Tawhaki period, the kite's importance all but disappeared.

In later years kites were used more for recreation but some of the ancient rites and uses lived on. Traditional stories tell of huge kites lifting men into the sky to escape from their enemies, or dropping a man from a kite into a fortified pa under cover of night to open the gates for the attacking warriors. Some of the early Maori kites required hundreds of men to fly them - similar to the big wan-wan kites of Japan. Kites were also used as auguries to foretell the outcome of a battle, to warn of approaching attackers and to claim new territory at a kites landfall.

Today there are just seven original Maori kites from the 19^th and early 20^th centuries left. They are held in four museums, in London, Hawaii, Auckland and Wellington.

Originally published in 1990, Bob Maysmor's book Te Manu Tukutuku, documents the known history of the Maori kite. An updated edition has just been published. With additional illustrations, many more colour photos, an extra chapter and a 'how to make a kite' section. The book has been redesigned and is now case-bound. According to Professor Hirini Mead, the book "Te Manu Tukutuku has played a valuable role in the revival of interest in Maori kite making." With the publication of this second edition Mead says "that we can look forward to seeing many manu tukutuku soaring, dipping and fluttering in the skies"

He manu tukutuku te rangi ka uhia he huruhuru te manu ka tau
Kites adorn the sky as feathers adorn the bird