Country: New Zealand
Key Area: Transportation
Services: Geotechnical Engineering,Heritage
During the New Zealand Transport Agency's (formerly Transit New Zealand) investigations into the establishment of a southbound passing lane along SH1 north of Kaikoura, consultations with local iwi and the Historic Places Trust indicated that a number of archaeological sites associated with the Clarence Archaeological Complex would be disturbed during roadworks.
Before roadworks could take place, the New Zealand Transport Agency conducted extensive archaeological investigations to determine the site’s historical and cultural significance. This included a month-long archaeological dig along the course of the passing lane. The remains of extensive cooking areas -- hangi (earth ovens) and middens (refuse dumps) -- were found along the 1000m stretch of road. Some of the artefacts, including a small greenstone adze and fine-grained stone-flake cutting blades, probably date to around the 14th to 16th centuries AD. Analysis of the material recovered from the site is ongoing.
