Repairs for ancient Maori house

The house survived a volcano in the village of Te Wairoa in 1886

The great-great grandson of a Maori carver is visiting the UK to help restore a 126-year-old meeting house brought over from New Zealand.

The structure, whose Maori name translates as Hinemihi of the Old World, stands in the grounds of Clandon Park house, near Guildford, in Surrey.

New Zealand governor William Hillier, the 4th Earl of Onslow, paid £50 to buy it as a souvenir in 1892.

Now the carver's direct descendant, Jim Schuster, is advising on repair work.

His great-great grandfather, Tene Waitere, carved totara wood for the creation of the meeting house in 1880.

Twenty-eight years have passed since major repairs were last made Jim Schuster, Maori heritage adviser

Mr Schuster, 55, from Rotorua on New Zealand's North Island, is a Maori heritage adviser to the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.

He is working on conservation efforts for the Hinemihi house alongside The National Trust and University College London's Institute of Archaeology.

"Hinemihi has immense cultural significance and historic importance owing to its rarity," said Mr Schuster.

"A number of conservation options are open to us which can be dealt with over a period of time.

"Twenty-eight years have passed since major repairs were last made to the building and the English climate has taken its toll."

Maori and British craftsmen will work on repairs once enough money has been raised.

Meeting houses act as the focal point for Maori communities and feature ornate carvings of symbolic ancestors.