Signal Hill (Maori: Te Pahuri o te Rangipohika) is a prominent landform in the city of

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. It is located close to, and due north of, the head of the

Otago Harbour Otago Harbour is the natural harbour of Dunedin, New Zealand, consisting of a long, much-indented stretch of generally navigable water separating the Otago Peninsula from the mainland. They join at its southwest end, from the harbour mouth. It ...

and reaches an elevation of 393 m (1289 ft). The suburbs Ravensbourne, St. Leonards, and Opoho lie on its southern, eastern, and northwestern flanks, respectively. To the northwest is

North East Valley North East Valley (sometimes spelt Northeast Valley, and often abbreviated to NEV) is a suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. Geography North East Valley sits in the valley of the Lindsay Creek, a tributary of the Water of Leith and on t ...

, the

thalweg In geography and fluvial geomorphology, a thalweg or talweg () is the line of lowest elevation within a valley or watercourse. Under international law, a thalweg is the middle of the primary navigable channel of a waterway that defines the bounda ...

Lindsay Creek The Lindsay Creek is a tributary of the Water of Leith which runs through the northern suburbs of Dunedin, New Zealand. The Māori name ''Puke-haukea'' has been attributed to the creek; however, as ''puke'' means a hill, not a watercourse, this ...

, a tributary of the

Water of Leith The Water of Leith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Uisge Lìte'') is the main river flowing near central Edinburgh, Scotland, and flows into the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth. Name The name ''Leith'' may be of Britto ...

. The southernmost spur of Signal Hill, Logan Point, has been extensively quarried for road gravel. State Highway 88 skirts the foot of the hill close to the edge of the Otago Harbour. A secondary summit of the hill (height 329 m) is capped by a monument to the New Zealand Centennial of 1940, a large structure including two large bronze figures representing "History" and "The Thread of Life" designed by F. W. Sturrock and F. W. Staub. Although commissioned for the centenary of the signing of the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

, the monument was not constructed until the 1950s, owing to the enforced strictures of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. A large stone from

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

is also incorporated in the monument, symbolising the ties between Dunedin and its

sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

. The monument is surrounded by a scenic reserve 180 hectares in extent. This park was inaugurated as a much smaller park in 1926, and has gradually been extended to its current size. The reserve, located only five kilometres from central Dunedin, is a popular site for both locals and visitors, and affords an excellent panoramic view over the city. In October 2006, a series of bush fires caused extensive damage to the plantations of forest which cover the western slopes of the hill.

References

{{Commons category, Signal Hill (Dunedin) *Bishop, G. & Hamel, A. (1993). ''From Sea to Silver Peaks''. Dunedin: John McIndoe. *Herd, J. & Griffiths, G. J. (1980). ''Discovering Dunedin''. Dunedin: John McIndoe. Hills of Otago Geography of Dunedin Protected areas of Otago Tourist attractions in Dunedin Urban forests in New Zealand