The piano at the elms

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dc.contributor.authorMoffat, Kirstineen_NZ
dc.contributor.editorCooper, Annabeen_NZ
dc.contributor.editorPaterson, Lachyen_NZ
dc.contributor.editorWanhalla, Angelaen_NZ
dc.date.accessioned2019-12-09T03:19:54Z
dc.date.available2015en_NZ
dc.date.available2019-12-09T03:19:54Z
dc.date.issued2015en_NZ
dc.description.abstractJust before the bustle of the Tauranga business district begins, beyond a sprawling overpass junction, there is a tranquil haven of serenity enclosed by a white picket fence. I push open the gate and wander down a curving shell path which admits me to the faithfully preserved historical precinct that is The Elms. When I step into the parlour a shaft of morning sunlight illuminates the gleaming rosewood case of an 1855 grand piano. The wood is polished to a high gloss, the grain apparent beneath the veneer, golden tones alternating with rich brown. Two octagonal carvings decorate the side of the instrument, a pattern repeated on the scrolls framing the brass pedals. Three tapering, but sturdy, circular legs end in a simple castor, but begin with wing-like carvings that attach them to the sinuous curves of the body. To the twenty-first-century New Zealand eye the spiral at the centre of each 'wing' resembles a koru. The top of the piano is shut, the lid a repository for a display of ornaments and knick-knacks. A Chinese plate, the photograph of a woman in Victorian dress, a small leather card case and a lorgnette rest on a cream cloth painted with flowers, ferns and mushrooms. Such is the mirror-like lustre of the wood that the photograph is reflected in the piano's surface, as are the faces of the family portraits on the wall behind.
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.citationMoffat, K. (2015). The piano at the elms. In A. Cooper, L. Paterson, & A. Wanhalla (Eds.), The Lives of Colonial Objects (pp. 81–86). Dunedin: Otago University Press.en
dc.identifier.isbn1927322022en_NZ
dc.identifier.isbn9781927322024en_NZ
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10289/13284
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherOtago University Pressen_NZ
dc.relation.isPartOfThe Lives of Colonial Objectsen_NZ
dc.rights© 2015 Copyright with the author
dc.titleThe piano at the elmsen_NZ
dc.typeChapter in Book
pubs.begin-page81
pubs.elements-id128134
pubs.end-page86
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/2024 PBRF
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/DASL
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/DASL/2024 PBRF - DASL
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/DASL/SSAR
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/DASL/SSAR/ENGL
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/Research Institutes And Research Groups
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/Research Institutes And Research Groups/FASS
pubs.organisational-group/Waikato/Research Institutes And Research Groups/FASS/TTRU
pubs.place-of-publicationDunedinen_NZ
pubs.user.infoMoffat, Kirstine (kirstine@waikato.ac.nz)
uow.identifier.chapter-no11
uow.verification.statusverified
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