Why New Zealand greenstone is the perfect holiday gift

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Nephrite jade, otherwise known as greenstone or pounamu, is a coveted stone with spiritual meaning to the Māori people, who are indigenous to New Zealand. Local artisans carve the stone into six symbols for jewelry that's meant to be gifted. (Tiney Ricciardi, The Denver Post)

Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we will offer our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems).

Travelers flock to New Zealand to experience its lush mountainscapes, jaw-droppingly blue waters and world-renowned wines. Even if the Instagrammable landscapes are the impetus for a trip, those who visit receive complimentary schooling on the country’s native Māori culture, which shows up prominently in language and local traditions notwithstanding the history of colonialism there.

As far back as the late 1300s, Polynesian settlers inhabited the islands that comprise New Zealand and formed that distinct Māori culture. When British colonialists arrived in the 1800s, they signed an agreement with the Indigenous people known as the Treaty of Waitangi setting the stage for the Māori to maintain sovereignty over their lands and villages.

But the reality was not that simple. Because some English words did not directly translate into Māori, the Indigenous communities unknowingly signed away some of the very rights they believed they were codifying. That led to conflicts in the decades following the establishment of New Zealand as a British colony.

Today, New Zealand makes a concerted effort to acknowledge and celebrate its Indigenous roots. Māori language appears on road signs and in common greetings like kia ora (“hello”), as well as throughout local art and customs.

One Māori tradition I brought home with me from a recent two-week trip to New Zealand comes in the form of beautiful nephrite jade, also known as pounamu or greenstone. The stone is revered by the Indigenous people who have a deep spiritual connection to it as they consider it a stone from the Gods.

Importantly, New Zealand does not mine pounamu. Instead, people search for and find it in riverbeds and glacial valleys on the South Island, named Te Waipounamu in Māori, meaning “the Greenstone Isle.”

In 1997, the government deemed the South Island’s largest tribe, Ngāi Tahu, guardian of the mineral. The tribe ensures any local pounamu that is sold is harvested ethically from the island. The tribe also advocates for protecting the rivers where the jade comes from and the communities that surround it.

Māori communities have long used the stone, which is strong and durable, in tools and weapons. Given its rarity, pounamu is also worn as jewelry and gifted. The Māori believe that the stone embodies a person’s mauri – or a piece of their essence and being – when it’s worn, making it a sentimental heirloom.

Local artisans often carve the sturdy stones into six designs that symbolize additional sentiments that the gifter wants to bestow. I’m not a deeply spiritual person, but I was so touched by the story of pounamu and its connection to the people and the land of New Zealand that I did all my holiday shopping at a Mountain Jade store before returning home.

The six Māori symbols are as follows:

Mountain Jade sources stone from New Zealand as well as other countries like Canada, Indonesia and Australia. Its network of artists carve it into the shapes above and others. The Ngāi Tahu tribe also sells authentic pounamu through an online shop.

If this sounds like the kind of storied gift you’d like to share with the loved ones in your life, nephrite jade jewelry is widely available online through Mountain Jade and other retailers on Amazon and Etsy. (Don’t forget to wrap in the free history lesson, too.)

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