Takiroa Rock Art Shelter facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Takiroa Rock Art Shelter |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Type | Rock art |
| Location | Canterbury, New Zealand |
| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Designated: | 16 April 1985 |
| Reference #: | 5653 |
The Takiroa Rock Art Shelter is a special place in New Zealand. It is an archaeological site, which means it's a place where people study the past through things left behind. You can find it along State Highway 83 near Duntroon.
This site has a natural rock shelter made of limestone. Inside, you can see many amazing drawings made by the Māori, who are the native people of New Zealand. These drawings, called rock art, were created between the years 1400 and 1900. The shelter is open for everyone to visit. Fences are put up to help protect the old artwork from being damaged.
Contents
What is Takiroa Rock Art?
The Takiroa Historic Area is famous for its Māori drawings. These artworks were made using natural materials. Artists used ochre (a type of natural earth pigment), bird fat, and charcoal (burnt wood).
What do the drawings show?
The pictures in the shelter show many different things. Some drawings look like people. Others show animals, such as birds. You can also see pictures of early European settlers. These drawings include things like horses and ships that the settlers brought with them.
- Examples of Māori rock art at Takiroa
-
-
-
.jpg)
.jpg)
History of the Shelter
Over the years, people have worked to protect the Takiroa Rock Art Shelter. It has an interesting history.
Protecting the artwork
Around 1913, some pieces of the artwork were carefully taken from the rock. They were moved to museums so more people could see them and they could be kept safe. Fences were built in 1930 and again in 1964. These fences were meant to stop farm animals and visitors from accidentally damaging the art. However, these early fences were not always very effective.
Heritage New Zealand is an organization that looks after important historic places. In 1985, they listed the Takiroa shelter as a Category II Historic Place. This means it is a place of special historical or cultural importance. Later, in 1998, the New Zealand government gave the care of the shelter to Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu. This is the main tribal council for the Ngāi Tahu Māori people.
Recent events
In May 2010, a large piece of rock above the shelter fell down. It broke the protective fences. Luckily, the rock art itself was mostly unharmed. The shelter had to be closed to visitors after this event. It stayed closed until March 2012, when all the repairs were finished. Now, the Takiroa Rock Art Shelter is open again for everyone to enjoy and learn from.
