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Taputapuātea Marae Sacred Landscape
Taputapuātea, Raʻiātea, Society Islands
French Polynesia
Active (UNESCO World Heritage 2017)
Single grove
- Location
- Taputapuātea, Raʻiātea, Society Islands
- Coordinates
- ~16.84°S 151.37°W
- Elevation
- Coast to forested valleys/mountains
- Size
- Cultural landscape (marae + sacred pass, islet, valleys, mountains)
- Age / Founded
- ~1,000 years old (pre-European Mā'ohi)
- Status
- Active (UNESCO World Heritage 2017)
- Deity & Religion
- God 'Oro; where Te Ao (living) meets Te Pō (ancestors/gods); Mā'ohi religion
- Community & Guardians
- Mā'ohi (Tahitian) people; pan-Polynesian chiefs
- Vernacular name
- Marae (sacred temple grove)
- Record type
- Single grove
Cultural practices & uses
Central temple & religious heart of Eastern Polynesia; seafaring departure point to Hawai'i/NZ/Rapa Nui; chiefly gatherings
Plant species
Forest-covered sacred valleys (banyan/aoa & native trees)
Biome & fauna
Society Islands valley forest, reef & islet
Threats & protection
UNESCO World Heritage Site (2017)
Source
Taputapuātea (UNESCO #1529; Wikipedia)