Dimensions
118.1 inch (H)
300 cm (H)
Medium
Bronze
Style
Contemporary Sculpture, Wildlife, Activist Art
Edition Number
1/1
Description
The Haast's eagle (Hieraaetus moorei, formerly called Harpagornis moorei) is an extinct species of eagle that once lived in the South Island of New Zealand, commonly accepted to be the pouakai of Maori legend.
The species was the largest eagle known to have existed. Its massive size is explained as an evolutionary response to the size of its prey, the flightless moa, the largest of which could weigh 230 kg (510 lb). Haast's eagle became extinct around 1400, after the moa were hunted to extinction by the first Māori. Gillie and Marc created this sculpture for Karamea which is a town on the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand.
