Mere Pounamu

The mere pounamu (greenstone) like the patu were often sharp at their forward edge and were used with thrusting, jabbing and swinging blows. Māori weapons are notable for their fine sculptural form and were designed for close hand-to-hand combat. No other stone-age war implements surpassed them in deadly effectiveness. The mere pounamu is the most valuable of the Māori short hand weapons.