Weekender, July 3, 2021

SATURDAY, JULY 3, 2021 IN THE BEGINNING “He loved a book because it was a book; he loved its odour, its form, its title,” 19th century novelist Gustave Flaubert once wrote. He could have been talking about Gisborne man Anaru Rondon, who talks to Mark Peters about e Word – Te Kupu, an upcoming exhibition from his collection of texts. he word, written and Diderot, Jean-Jacques Rousseau printed, beginning with and Condorcet, and English writers the late-medieval period, Samuel Johnson, John Milton and Tthrough epochs of Western Jonathan Swift. civilisation to the modern world, is “All of these are connected,” says at the heart of e Word – Te Kupu, Anaru. an exhibition of texts from Anaru “ e Word spans 700 years. Rondon’s extensive collection. Written English has been around An avid reader and collector since for hundreds of years but it wasn’t he was a child, Anaru’s selection until the 15th century that printing of texts for the exhibition range was invented by Gutenberg from the late-medieval period in 1450. It was a revolution (the “father of English literature”, because prior to that, books were Geoff rey Chaucer’s time) and the handwritten and few people could beginning of the Renaissance, and aff ord to buy them. the Reformation in the mid-1500s “Making them was laborious to the time of Martin Luther, because there was no paper. ey William Tyndale, and Johann had to use vellum — goatskin, Gutenberg who revolutionised sheepskin, pigskin — and they printing in Europe with his had quills to write on vellum. e mechanical moveable-type printing best quills were made with the tail press. feathers of geese.” Also in the collection are texts Even in handwritten from the Age of the Enlightenment manuscripts, the margins are WORDS, WORDS, WORDS: A collector of books and manuscripts since he was 10 years old, Anaru Rondon (1660-1788), a period noted justifi ed — a function a computer’s prepares to include a selection that spans 700 years of the written word. Picture by Liam Clayton for writers such as historian Word programme now takes care of and philosopher Voltaire, who with the click of a key. people were tough and well- written books with painted Lapis lazuli with its intense blue advocated freedom of expression “ ey ruled their margins,” says disciplined. ey were trained very decoration, pigments had to be pigment, came from Afghanistan. and separation of church and state, Anaru. young and did it all their lives.” imported from Afghanistan, political philosopher Montesquieu, “You can see in the manuscripts Colour was rare, and for Eastern Europe and the Middle Encyclopédie compilers Denis the lines they ruled. ese old illuminated manuscripts, hand- East. Continued on page 2 It’s your life, your funeral Why plan ahead? Prearranging your funeral provides peace of mind for you and your family. It allows you to leave clear instructions to your family on how you would like to be remembered and the style of farewell you would like. Start the conversation – help take the burden off your loved ones by making your end-of-life decisions in advance, in a calm and thoughtful atmosphere. We are happy to meet with you and guide you through the prearranging and prepayment process. Goodbye is as important as hello. A meaningful Evan’s Funeral Services Ltd. Ph 06 867 9150 Fax 06 868 5312 farewell supports healthy grieving. 171 Ormond Road, Gisborne. Email offi [email protected] 33889-02 2 THE GISBORNE HERALD LEAD Preserving our histories PROTECTING TAONGA: Anaru Rondon and partner Sally August, a museum development adviser, are both involved with the preservation of taonga such as books, texts and manuscripts. Picture by Liam Clayton From page 1 manuscript. granting full or partial remission of the of texts and artefacts that will feature “The Gutenberg press brought printed punishment of sin — and this eventually in The Word – Te Kupu are illuminated Natural pigments introduced by the books into the hands of the people, as the gave birth to Protestantism. manuscripts, historical newspapers, Egyptians included malachite, a deep green cost of book printing dropped,” says Sally. “He produced a version of the Bible that’s printed books, a book press, and printing mineral; cinnabar, a bright red mineral “Universities got their own printers still used in Germany today.” blocks. The texts are in several languages that, when crushed, provides an opaque, but before that they had handwritten Anaru, who comes from a Ngati Rangitihi, that include Latin, Greek, Arabic, Italian, bright red pigment; and orpiment, a bright, manuscripts. A lot of students would Ngai Tuhoe, Ngapuhi, Ngati Ruanui and French, English, and te reo Maori. They golden-yellow arsenic sulphide, imported handwrite their own books.” Celtic background, spent his teen years and cover various topics from religion to science from Syria. Paper began to supplant vellum after it 20s in libraries. These included the Dunedin and have been made from various natural Because colour pigment was so rare, most was introduced into Europe in the 15th Library and the Alexander Turnbull Library. materials — animal skins, parts of trees, people had access to it only as artwork in century, says Anaru. “They had books that went back nearly minerals and plants. cathedrals and seeing rich people’s clothing, “The Arabs had paper and introduced 1000 years. I got to handle those books. “One point of the exhibition is to give says Anaru’s partner it to Spain, so by the “I began collecting old books when I was people a taste of what they would find in Sally August, a museum I have books that were time the printing press about 10.” bigger towns and cities,” says Anaru. development adviser. was invented paper was Along with books and manuscripts he Libraries and archives are valuable for Among items in illegal back then. If you accessible. began to collect pre-European Maori and society because they are accessible, he says. the The Word - Kupu were caught with them “Printing came in Pacific material more than 30 years ago, and He cites The Poverty Bay Herald’s 1931 exhibition will be a the middle of the has even made his own traditional Maori account of the destructive Hawke’s Bay leaf from an illustrated you’d be burned with Renaissance. tools. earthquake. manuscript, written in them. It was really cruel “It all fits together like To learn more in his field of interest “That’s very poignant since it was Latin, containing the a jig-saw. Academics had he researched museum and private published in the aftermath. The Poverty text of Psalm 108 and . The Renaissance, more opportunities to collections, and studied at Te Wananga Bay Herald published an account of the embellished in coloured Reformation and challenge ideas. o Te Awanuiarangi in Whakatane. After earthquake because Napier’s Daily Telegraph inks and gold produced in Enlightenment put a “I have books that were completing a certificate in 1993, he was devastated by the earthquake and out of France in the 14th century. illegal back then. If you completed a degree in Maori studies in commission. By the mid-15th century, stop to that. were caught with them 1996. The exhibition will include an issue of that though, the existing you’d be burned with He also taught himself Latin. newspaper. method of book production in Europe was them. It was really cruel. “We were taught to think. That’s watered “That proves the value of an archive, the revolutionised. “The Renaissance, Reformation and down now.” value of records. Goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg’s ground- Enlightenment put a stop to that.” There is no television in the Rondon- “If you preserve books, texts and breaking printing press, with its movable Martin Luther is believed to have posted August household. Anaru does not use the manuscripts in libraries and personal type, could produce up to 3600 pages per his Ninety-Five Theses on the Power of internet, he doesn’t even use a computer. archives there is so much that can be workday, compared to 40 by hand-printing Indulgences, propositions for debate, “Social media is boring,” he says. learned from them. and a few by hand-copying. written in Latin, on the door of the “I like to handle a physical book or paper. “We have to be conscious about preserving The Gutenberg press, modelled on the Schlosskirche (Castle Church), Wittenberg, You don’t have to plug it in. our histories and keeping our repositories of design of existing screw presses (a type in 1517. This sparked the Protestant “When Sally and I met I was living without knowledge.” of machine press in which the ram is Reformation, says Anaru. electricity. driven up and down by a screw), was a The theses displayed Luther’s unhappiness “I was living like it was 1800.” ■ Te Kupu - The Word opens at marked improvement on the handwritten with the Church’s sale of indulgences — Among selections from his collection Tairawhiti Museum on July 17. Saturday, July 3, 2021 3 PROFILE ‘Everyone has a story to tell’ A life of abuse and trauma caused Elise Brooke to find a way to heal. She turned to poetry and has published two books under a pen name, Sheila Smith. Reporter Matai O’Connor spoke with Elise about her journey and how she ended up in Gisborne. My parents came to New Zealand a small flat to rent in from England and South Africa to Hastings. create their New Zealand dream, She met Jason and “which quickly turned into my New he moved in with Zealand nightmare.” her. Some red flags Elise was born in Napier and grew up in started to appear.

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