[3] Similarly, while the form of Te Uenuku is a popular motif for New Zealand artists, they must still exercise care in its use because of its sacred significance.
Tainui tradition would suggest that it dates from circa 1400 CE, an era known to New Zealand ethnologists as Te Tipunga or Archaic period.
According to Māori verbal history, around the year 1807 the Waipa District of the Waikato was invaded by a strong force led by Ngāti Toa chief Pikauterangi.
In the Battle of Hingakākā between Tainui and Ngāti Maniapoto warriors close to Lake Ngaroto, the sacred carving of Te Uenuku was lost.
[citation needed] The work was the centrepiece of the Te Maori exhibition which toured North America and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s.