The Māori people of New Zealand used their storehouses to keep accessories, weapons, farming tools, fishing gear and other essential equipment, along with processed and preserved food made from fish, birds, and root crops. Elaborately carved pātaka like this example are now common on modern marae ‘communal meeting places’. Tekoteko, a human figure placed on the gables, sticks out his tongue to challenge any enemies that might approach the pātaka.