Laments and fond memories of the Lady [audio report, pictures]

Old and young around the casket at the tangi for Dame Te Atairangikaahu yesterday at Turangawaewae Marae. Picture / Peter Drury

Beyond a sea of black, Dame Te Atairangikaahu's sheltered casket sat prominently among dozens of grieving kuia.

For many hours, the older women sat statue-still on the veranda, listening intently to the booming male voices around them ... or perhaps lost in their own world of private thoughts.

Occasionally a hand reached up to rest on the korowai - the brown ceremonial feather cloak - draped over their lost leader's body.

Further out, a clear patch of green grass separated two sides of seated Maori.

Tangata whenua - the family and other hosts - welcomed their visitors from the Tainui waka, which included leaders from Maniapoto, Waikato, Raukawa, and Hauraki iwi.

Throughout the afternoon, loud and proud male voices acknowledged their dead forefathers before the large, ever-increasing crowd.

The men often gestured toward the eight large photographs displayed on the wall behind Dame Te Ata's casket. Sometimes the amplified drone of oratory was interrupted by a waiata, a song of lament.

It was moving and powerful.

Away from the main crowd, people busily made their way from one marae building to another, greeting one another with hongis, hugs, and smiles. Others stood alone and watched.

Deeper inside the marae grounds, a handful of friends and family had already sat through a welcoming ceremony.

They sat on the banks of the Waikato River in the late afternoon sun as the children, some shirtless, played.

"She meant a lot to everybody - to people throughout this country," said Annetta Huriwaka of Hauraki.

"I had the pleasure of working with her through kohanga reo, of which she was the patron. As a woman, to look at her, she was soft and warm and embracing. She had a lot of charisma and humility. She had beautiful qualities."

Ms Huriwaka reflected on the time South Africa's veteran leader Nelson Mandela came to visit Ngaruawahia.

"You could see all the nationalities here - Pakeha, Maori, South Africans. At times like that she was in her element."

Lance Conner, also from Hauraki, said Dame Te Ata had the rare ability to "truly unite" people, and that was his lasting memory.

"She not only brought Maori and Maori together, but Maori and Pakeha together. She had an understanding of both cultures. She brought people together, it's happening now. She hasn't gone without leaving her mark."

For Glenice Toimata, of Raukawa, Dame Te Ata's legacy was a revitalised Maori language.

The Queen had been one of the driving forces behind the introduction of kohanga reo, which was now paying dividends among the younger generations.

Te Kauwhata schoolchildren Tia Ngatai, 15, and Hauwhenua Kirkwood, 11, both of Tainui, said Dame Te Ata was a "great leader".

Hauwhenua said he would remember "her kindness and just the way she respected the people and the land".

Outside, Pare Cooper cursed "mate huka" (diabetes), which she said had led to Dame Te Ata's death. "Such a waste of a wonderful woman."

She would remember her Queen not for anything ceremonial, but for something much more humble, reflecting the essence of the culture.

"Some people get intimidated by her because of her position - why are they like that? I just liked to sit with her and korero [talk]. She only wanted to be acknowledged as a human being, like you and me."

Down the road, outside Ngaruawahia's New World supermarket, Pakeha were also feeling the loss.

Avis Plummer, 74, said she had lived in the town for 50 years and had seen the development of Maoridom and its "dignified" ceremonial leader.

"Ngaruawahia will miss her. She's been here 40 years and someone definitely has big shoes to fill."