The Takiroa Rock Art Shelter is an archaeological site located along State Highway 83 near Duntroon,

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 ...

. The site features a limestone rock shelter containing several pieces of

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

rock art In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...

, dating between 1400 and 1900 AD. The shelter is open to public viewing, with fences constructed to protect the artwork from damage.

Rock art

The Takiroa Historic Area features several Māori drawings made from

ochre Ochre ( ; , ), or ocher in American English, is a natural clay earth pigment, a mixture of ferric oxide and varying amounts of clay and sand. It ranges in colour from yellow to deep orange or brown. It is also the name of the colours produced ...

, bird fat, and

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, cal ...

. The subject matter present in the shelter is variable. Some drawings have been interpreted as people and animals, such as birds. Depictions of European settlers are also apparent, which feature the likes of horses and ships. File:Takiroa Rock Art 1 (31396264806).jpg File:Takiroa Rock Art 2 (31287773262).jpg File:Takiroa_Rock_Art,_Duntroon_A.jpg

History

Several pieces of artwork were removed from the rockface around 1913 for display in museum collections. Fences were erected in 1930 and 1964 in order to prevent damage to the artwork by livestock and visitors, however these measures were generally ineffective.

Heritage New Zealand Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust) ( mi, Pouhere Taonga) is a Crown entity with a membership of around 20,000 people that advocate ...

(then known as the ''New Zealand Historic Places Trust''), which managed the shelter, listed it as a Category II Historic Place in 1985. Under the

Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998 The Ngāi Tahu Claims Settlement Act 1998 is an act of Parliament passed in New Zealand relating to Ngāi Tahu, the principal Māori (tribe) of the South Island. It was negotiated in part by Henare Rakiihia Tau. The documents in relation to the ...

, the Crown vested administration of the shelter to Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. In May 2010, a large portion of overhanging rock at the Takiroa Shelter fell, destroying the protective fences but leaving the rock art relatively unscathed. The shelter was subsequently closed to the public until March 2012, after repairs were completed.

References

{{Reflist Archaeological sites in New Zealand Heritage New Zealand Category 2 historic places in Canterbury, New Zealand Waitaki District Māori art Rock art of Oceania