A transcript of a plaque beside the Tautuku Legend Wool Mural.

The Legend of Kaiamoi of the Te Rapu-wai is recounted in the sculpture.

Kaiamoi tells how she was recaptured by the Ogre of the Matau and his two headed dogs while she was hunting for wekas with her friends.

She escaped from his cave and made a raft of raupo which carried her on the swift current to her home near the river mouth. There she told her people of the Ogre, and cleansed herself of the scales which had grown on her body during the abduction.

The Ogre flew into a rage when he discovered her escape and drank the river dry but the Te Rapu-wai waited for the North West winds when they set fire to the cave with burning bracken and killed the Ogre with clubs.

The sculpture shows the Ogre in his cave and his two headed dogs. The wekas can be seen in the raupo with the river beneath. The gold embellishment and the wool fabric are a reminder of the more recent history of the river and the district."

Presented to the Clutha County Council by Duffill, Watts and King Ltd., Consulting Engineers, to mark the opening of the County Administration Building in 1983.

Acknowledgements to "Stepping Out - a History of the Clutha County" by Evelyn McLay where the legend is recounted in more detail on Page 8.

Betty Fraser 1983