Pompallier Mission, Russell

I love stepping back in time don’t you? I particularly appreciate seeing the practices of artisans of the time passed, so I was fascinated by my visit to the Pompallier Mission Printer in Russell, during my holiday in The Bay of Islands earlier in the year.

This place was particularly important in New Zealand’s pioneer history, as it was the first to print Maori language books for the Roman Catholic Mission. It was headed by Bishop Jean-Baptiste Pompallier and stands in a French Provincial building on beautiful grounds with an orchard and vegetable garden with sweeping views of Russell Harbour. It also stands as witness to French influences in New Zealand and the Pacific.

But this isn’t a history lesson. This is really just to share with you my photos of the old tannery and printing house. There’s something so beautiful about the old book binding techniques.

The Printery above, is all that remains of the original Pompallier Mission and it has been restored back to its original glory. It’s also the oldest surviving industrial and Roman Catholic building in the country.

The tannery and leather works functioned in the Mission for twenty years until approximately 1863. They sold leather to the local army garrison and exported to Auckland. The leather was also used to cover the books.

I could only dream of a garden like this full of apple, pear, quince and crab apple trees, along with a thriving veggie patch. All this and overlooking the harbour! The garden was actually created by a family that later lived on the grounds from the late 1800’s. The NZ government acquired the mission in 1943 and continued to care for it and restore the remaining building.

An example of Maori text that would be printed.

Once the sheets had been printed, they were folded using a folding stick, knocked evenly and beaten on a smooth stone with a heavy cast-iron hammer to compress them. They were then sewn together using a sewing press like this one.

From here they were covered, but I find them more beautiful in the raw like this. I know a few artisans still practice old style book binding techniques. Of course it’s not practical, but I wonder if we’d appreciate books more if such handmade effort went in to it.

If you are in this part of the world, the Bay of Islands is certainly a place to visit. While you’re there, make sure you pop into Russell, the first capital of the country and soak up the local history.

Mel x