Maori heritage

Maori mythology attributes the formation of Auckland's volcanoes to a great battle fought between two forest dwelling peoples, who lived in the Waitakere and Hunua ranges on opposite sides of the volcanic field. As the battle raged, a tohunga from the Hunua side caused the sun to rise early, which blinded their opponents and allowed many of them to be killed.

The Hunua warriors then attempted to reach the Waitakere ranges to finish the battle, but were stopped in their tracks by volcanic explosions, lava and ash, invoked by the deity Mataoho at the request of a Waitakere tohunga. The volcanoes that now dot the Auckland landscape are said to be the remains of this volcanic upheaval.

Since soon after their arrival in Aotearoa, Maori chose to make the Auckland district their home, settling close to many of Auckland's volcanoes so they could utilise the rich, fertile soils for gardening and take advantage of the steep sided volcanic cones as defensive pa. The volcanic cones are believed to have been used as occupation sites from the 14th century and became increasingly fortified from the 17th century on (Cameron et al., 1997).

Evidence of past Maori activity can be seen at a number of archaeological sites, including pa, terrace and food storage pits on or near Auckland's volcanoes. For example, impressive and complex earthworks of pa can be seen on cones like Maungawhau (Mt Eden), Mangere Mountain (see the image above) and Maungakiekie (One Tree Hill). The final development of such sites may have taken generations as all earthmoving was done by hand, aided only by stone and wooden tools. (Jamieson, 1992).

Probably even more numerous than the pa are other earthworks associated with dwelling places and food storage. They include; terraces which were built primarily as house sites, and were later developed for defensive purposes, platforms and numerous types of pits.

Maori cleared large areas of volcanic stone to develop garden plots. They shifted soil from exposed areas to artificially deepen the garden soils. At Maungakiekie (One Tree Hill) it is estimated that there were 1000 hectares of gardens on the extensive volcanic soils surrounding the cone.

The rock cleared from the lava stone fields was used in several ways. Stone walls were built to mark the pathways through garden systems or as housing foundations, which were rectangular with an entranceway. Alternatively, volcanic rock was heaped up and covered in soil, which then warmed up, enabling an extended growing season. Other uses included row alignments, platforms, pavements, sub-surface drainage systems, houses, shelters, stone-faced pits and terraces, stone walled defences and retaining walls. Evidence of these structures remains today, and can be seen in a number of sites throughout Auckland. For example, stone walls stretching up to hundreds of metres can be seen on the stone fields of Puhinui near Manukau City.

In the 1700s the Waiohua people from the Tamaki (Auckland) isthmus were forced to abandon their pa after invasion from the Ngati Whatua (from Kaipara region). Then in the 1820's, Ngapuhi raiders from the north came wielding muskets forcing the Ngati Whatua to move on. European settlers arrived soon after and the isthmus became virtually deserted (Jamieson, 1992). Massive landscape changes followed this, and the isthmus eventually developed into the modern city of Auckland.

Sources: Jamieson, A., Sept. 1992. Volcanic Auckland, New Zealand Geographic, No. 16, pp. 90-113. Cameron, E., Hayward, B., Murdoch, G., 1997. A Field Guide to Auckland - Exploring the Region's Natural and Historical Heritage, Godwit Publishing Ltd, Auckland, New Zealand.