Book Description

As one of the largest and longest-lived trees in the world, kauri is a continual source of awe and wonder. Kauri is a tribute to this magnificent tree and its turbulent history. Revered for its size, kauri was at the very heart of Maori spirituality in important art works and rituals. Maori used kauri timber for crafting the great waka taua and carving waka huia which held important treasures. The gum was used for starting fires and colouring their moko, which was a particularly sacred procedure. The arrival of European settlers in the early 1800s saw the beginning of the decimation of the great kauri forests, which had once covered most of the top half of the North Island. Trunks of young kauri were ideal for ships' masts and spars, and settlers discovered the mature trees yielded high quality timber for building houses. Kauri provided a strong, pliable timber for craft and furniture-making and the gum, too, became essential in the manufacture of varnishes. The pace of exploitation of kauri forests escalated and much good timber was destroyed as land was cleared for agriculture. Today little remains of the magnificent kauri forests, and the last of the great giants like Tane Mahuta are carefully protected, but the influence of these mighty trees on the development of our country is still very evident.