Items that were traded with, stolen from or gifted by Maori who came into contact with James Cook and his crew on the Endeavour's voyages to Aotearoa New Zealand were hugely valuable - culturally but also financially.
250 years on, archeologist, author and editor Janet Davidson has produced a book detailing the "artificial curiosities", as they were called, from Cook's three Pacific voyages, and that are held in the Te Papa collection.
The objects that are described in The Cook Voyages Encounters published by Te Papa Press range from hei tiki and musical instruments to fish hooks and weaponry.
Janet has researched the provenance of the items and discounted some that have questionable attributions to Cook's expeditions.
