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Saturday, June 26, 2004
Saving animals from extinction
Rare livestock breeds would be lost without the efforts of a small society of enthusiasts, writes Tim Cronshaw.
After spending much of their working life conserving historic objects, retired archaeologists Michael Trotter and Bev McCulloch are preserving historic animals.
Trotter was director of the Canterbury Museum, and McCulloch a palaeontologist when they began thinking of their retirement years.
They could have poured their energy into active archaeology, but hankered to do something on the land.
Thursday, June 24, 2004
Farming origins gain 10,000 years
Wild types of emmer wheat like those found at Ohalo were forerunners of today's varieties
Humans made their first tentative steps towards farming 23,000 years ago, much earlier than previously thought.
Stone Age people in Israel collected the seeds of wild grasses some 10,000 years earlier than previously recognised, experts say.
These grasses included wild emmer wheat and barley, which were forerunners of the varieties grown today.
A US-Israeli team report their findings in the latest Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The evidence comes from a collection of 90,000 prehistoric plant remains dug up at Ohalo in the north of the country. "
Thursday, June 17, 2004
Paremata Barracks suffer from souvenir hunters
One of New Zealand's most significant historic sites, the Paremata Barracks at Porirua, is suffering serious damage after being picked over by souvenir hunters.
Historic Places Trust heritage adviser Robert McClean said that since late last year, people had been taking stones from the barracks, creating two large holes in the northeastern wall.
Friday, June 11, 2004
Swamp finds highlight for archaeology convention
A three-year study of Maori artefacts unearthed from North Taranaki wetlands will be one of the highlights of an archaeology convention in December.
Farmers have been finding Maori artefacts since the 1950s, and when Auckland University researchers realised the regional trend they decided to delve a little deeper.
'It was obvious that we were increasingly working on items from North Taranaki but we didn't have any idea of the context,' associate professor Harry Allen, of Auckland University's Department of Anthropology, said.
At the invitation of North Taranaki iwi Ngati Mutunga, the university sought funding for a more in-depth study of the wetlands surrounding and north of the Urenui river. "
Wednesday, June 09, 2004
Rat points to Polynesian origins
Research on domestic rats has pinpointed Halmahera, a four-pronged island between Borneo and New Guinea, as the most likely pre-Pacific homeland of the Polynesians.
A 12-year study by Auckland University biological anthropologist Lisa Matisoo-Smith has traced the genetic origins of the Pacific rat, Rattus exulans, which migrated with humans in canoes throughout the Pacific Islands and New Zealand during the past 3000 years.
The results, published today in the US Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, show that the Pacific rat can be divided into three genetic groups, which coincide in Halmahera. "
Monday, June 07, 2004
Storm damages historic hut
A fragile historic hut used by Scott and Shackleton in Antarctica has been damaged and two others could have been destroyed by the ferocious storm which lashed Scott Base in late May.
The damage to Discovery Hut was found only when workers at the New Zealand base and the neighbouring American McMurdo Station completed urgent repair work to their own bases following the 250kmh blizzard. Antarctic Heritage Trust executive director Nigel Watson said the storm forced snow into the hut, putting at risk irreplaceable artefacts and accelerating the deterioration of the building. But he was even more worried about two other historic huts used by Scott and Shackleton, which could have been damaged or even destroyed by the savage storm but cannot be inspected until daylight returns in August. 'It's a lottery for the next three months to find out what's happened to them,' he said. 'There's a real question mark hanging over them.'"
Friday, June 04, 2004
Landowner's dream turns sour
A family's plan to build their dream home on a vacant South Auckland lot has turned into a three year ordeal that's left them $70,000 out of pocket.
When the Wilson's bought the land in Whitford, on Auckland's southern outskirts, they did not know it held cultural significance for local iwi.
Greg Wilson bought the 1 1/4 acre lot three years ago. After buying the land Wilson and his parents spent a year finalising plans for their house, when suddenly their surveyor found a file at Manukau City Council which revealed the land was once a Maori Pa.
The file was not available to the public.
'If we'd known it was a Pa site we wouldn't have entered or started trying to buy the place,' Greg Wilson said
Asked why the Pa was not included in the land title documents Manukau City Council replied, 'No council has the ability to list all historical sites or Waahi Tapu within their boundaries. Once the sites are identified councils are bound to deliver a transparent process under the resource management act.'
Following the discovery Wilson began two years of consultation with the local iwi, Ngai Tai, who were concerned over the possible desecration of an important historical site."
Warning to property buyers
The leaders of Manukau City are clashing over how much information land buyers are entitled to before they purchase.
Greg Wilson has held futile negotiations with local iwi after discovering the place he planned to build his dream house on was once a pa site.
Manukau City Mayor Sir Barry Curtis says buyers should beware and not put all their faith in a LIM report.
Wilson bought his Whitford lot three years ago to build a house because the LIM report did not mention it was once a pa site."
Trust Brochures
The New Zealand Historic Places Trust produces a number of brochures.
We have recently published a series of six brochures describing various types of archaeological sites. Text versions plus downloadable pdf versions are available throught the Trust site
New Zealand's FIrst Gardens
Historic Industries
Middens & Rubbish Dumps
Archaeological Remains of Pa
Shipwrecks & Underwater Arcaeological Sites
Early Towns & Cities
Other archaeological brochures:
Protecting Archaeological SItes
Applying for an Archaeological Authority
Tuesday, June 01, 2004
Saving Antiquities For Everyone
SAFE - new website about site looting and antiquities trading.
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