28 Feb 2008

Royal New Zealand Air Force donates gifts from late King of Tonga's family to Museum

11:15 am on 28 February 2008

The Royal New Zealand Air Force has donated a tapa cloth and two fine mats used to protect the casket of King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV to the Te Papa Museum.

King Tupou IV died in Auckland in September 2006 and the tapa cloth and fine mats were placed under his casket during his return home on an Air Force Flight.

The king's wife gifted the mats and tapa to the Air Force, which in return decided to donate them to the Te Papa Museum in Wellington.

Commanding Officer of Number 40 Squadron, Kevin McEvoy, says there is no better place for them than in the museum.

"We decided that we couldn't do them justice either being stored somewhere else, the Air Force Museum didn't have the capacity, so we looked towards Te Papa and they said yes. It was the logical choice for us in terms of the capacity of the museum. It seemed a logical choice. The Air Force of the people of New Zealand donating it to the museum, which is the museum of the people of New Zealand."

Commanding Officer of Number 40 Squadron, Kevin McEvoy.