As soon as you arrive in New Zealand, you’ll notice the greenstone (pounamu in Māori) pendants, often attached to a leather necklace, around the necks of many locals and tourists.

They’re among the most popular souvenirs for sale here, and it’s almost de rigueur for visitors to buy one as soon as possible and wear it proudly as they travel around the country. But look more closely and you’ll also soon discover that not all pounamu is the same. 

Get the inside scoop on the latest cultural happenings all over the world delivered weekly to your inbox with our email newsletter.

As a teenager, my father (a New Zealander himself) gave me a pounamu hei-tiki as a gift after he’d been back home. I hate to admit it, but I never even really thought what it meant, I just knew it was an iconic Māori design. I loved the way it felt in my hands and I wore it on a leather necklace for years – including in my first adult passport photo.  

Later I found out the tiki is a fertility symbol, so when the time came to try to get pregnant I wore it once more. Oh and, yes it worked!

So here’s the lowdown on what to consider when buying a pounamu souvenir (whether it’s bad luck to buy it for yourself is open for debate). We cover certificates of authenticity, and the significance of the main four designs you’ll see, so that you can purchase a quintessential New Zealand gift with as much mana (power) as possible.

Greenstone is a semiprecious gemstone, also known as jade ©…

Read Full Article Source