A precious Maori manuscript that's been gathering dust for the past 55 years has been published.
Pei Te Hurinui Jones, of Ngati Maniapoto, spent years writing a Maori account of creation based on the sacred knowledge of the Tainui people.
He finished the text entitled He Tuhi Marei-kura: A Treasury of Sacred Writing in 1957, but it wasn't published during his lifetime. The work was given to his family after he died in 1976.
Mr Jones's great-grandaughter Ariana Paul says the books are hugely significant for Maoridom and reflect his passion for the ancestry of the Tanui tribes.
Ms Paul says he spent much of his life researching the tribes of the west coast of the North Island, talking to Tanui elders and leaders.
In honor of Pei Te Hurinui Jones, the family has decided to gift every marae in Waikato-Tainui with a set of his books.
The launch will be held on Sunday at Te Toka-nga-nui-a-noho Marae in TeKuiti where Mr Jones is buried.
