"The Toitu Tauraka Waka became the first place in Te Wai Pounamu to be recognised for its ancestral significance as a wāhi tūpuna under the Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga Act 2014 on 22 January 2016."
The Media Release is as follows:
16 March 2016
Toitu Tauraka Waka recognised as wāhi tūpuna
by Heritage New Zealand
The Toitu Tauraka Waka became the first place in Te Wai Pounamu to be recognised for its ancestral significance as a wāhi tūpuna under the Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga Act 2014 on 22 January 2016.
The entry recognises the importance of this site and its place in New Zealand’s national identity. The occasion is to be marked by the unveiling of a commemorative plaque at 10.30am on 22 March at John Wickliffe Plaza, Princes Street, Dunedin.
The Toitu tauraka waka was one of several Kāti Mamoe-Kāi Tahu landing places in the Otago harbour at the time of colonial settlement in the Otago region. Situated beside the Toitu creek as it emptied into the harbour, the tauraka waka site provided a softly sloped beach for landing waka, a good point of entry to the surrounding bush and māhika kai, as well as access to fresh water.
During the earliest years of colonial settlement of Dunedin the tauraka waka area became a vibrant trade and market place for a brief period of time. The colonial enterprise to establish the city eventually resulted in the channelisation of the Toitu while the tauraka waka was rapidly submerged under the building and foreshore reclamation for the city of Dunedin.
The Toitu Tauraka Waka wāhi tūpuna site commemorates the traditional lifestyle of the Kāi Te Pahi, Kāti Moki, and Kāti Taoka hapū; their early interactions with European colonists, and the short-lived trading activity that took place at the landing site once colonists first arrived in Otago.
Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga, Te Rūnanga o Otakou and the Dunedin City Council are delighted to celebrate the occasion of the first wāhi tūpuna for Te Wai Pounamu (second nationally to Waitangi) and hope the Dunedin community and visitors will enjoy learning more about this special place.
For more information:
Edward Ellison
Te Rūnanga o Otakou
(w) 03 478 0352
Dean Whiting
Central/Southern Maori Heritage Manager
(w) 04 494 8043
(m) 027 244 2120
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