From 6 to 11 January this year, Mātauranga Māori Curator Dr Amber Aranui dusted off her excavation gear and joined Dr Monica Tromp and three Otago University students for a community-based archaeological excavation at Butler Point in Hihi. The excavation was led by Dr Justin Maxwell and Dr Jennifer Huebert Maxwell of Sunrise Archaeology. Here, Amber describes the excavation as well as working with local rangatahi learning about archaeology, as well as the history of their whenua.
Today, Butler Point is home to the Butler Point Whaling Museum, the historic Butler house, and the impressive and extensive garden, which has been recognised as a Garden of Significance. The past remains deeply embedded in the landscape, with three significant pā – Moehuri, Rangikapiti, and Rangitoto – still visible in the bay.
Located within the rohe of Ngāti Kahu, the excavation was a collaborative effort with iwi and the community, allowing us to learn about the Māori history of the area while investigating layers of occupation, beginning with Māori settlement. The site’s proximity to marine resources and fertile land made it ideal for gardening and living.
Our focus was on a site associated with the 19th century, a period of early Māori-European interaction, particularly through the whaling industry. This aligns with our project well, as the Bay of Islands, and Mangōnui specifically, played a formative role in the creation of our bicultural nation, and the dramatic shift in the interaction and use of marine mammals. Butler’s Point once housed a store that supplied provisions and timber to visiting whaling ships.
Working with rangatahi
As a community-focused excavation, we had the privilege of working with local rangatahi eager to learn about archaeology and the history of their whenua. I worked closely with two wāhine, Summer and Sahara, whose reflections on the experience are shared below.
“This experience marked our first encounter with anything related to archaeology, and it far exceeded our expectations. We had the opportunity to learn about the rich history of Butler Point, engaging with both experienced archaeologists and individuals from the local community, many of whom had little or no prior experience, much like us. The range of discoveries was impressive, including a variety of taonga, from a range of coloured glass fragments to what could potentially be dog teeth.
“Through conversations with the community and skilled archaeologists, we gained insight into the area’s past, exploring the historical significance of these artefacts. Additionally, we became familiar with the meticulous process involved in archaeological excavation. We learned about mapping, careful digging, scraping, sifting, tagging, and identifying artefacts, all of which require patience and precision.
“This experience sparked a curiosity in us about the past and deepened our understanding of the considerable effort required to unearth and preserve history. Moreover, it has inspired us to consider future career opportunities in the field, an area we hadn’t previously considered. This has also influenced our outlook on how we view the past. We now have a greater appreciation for all the work and knowledge behind every historical artefact.”
Butler House
Our team was lucky enough to stay in the old Butler House, which is also a museum full of history. It was a surreal feeling excavating on the site and discovering fragments of 19th-century pottery, pipe stems, and glass, then going back to the Butler House in the evening, surrounded by complete accoutrements from the same era. This helped us better understand the context in which we were excavating. Our crew spent many hours in the Butler kitchen debriefing on the day’s events and discussing what we had uncovered.
The front part of the Butler House was originally built on the island of Paewhenua, and was transported across the Mangōnui Harbour, placed where it is today, and added to in the 1840s by Captain William Butler (1814–1875). Captain Butler started out as a whaler but changed course to become a successful merchant. Due to his ties to the whaling industry, he set up a store to provide provisions to visiting whaling ships. He established the store very close to the excavation site, supplying whaling ships, and later exported flax and kauri gum to Australia.
Born in England, Butler went to sea at the age of 14, and by the time he was 24, he had become the master of his own whaling ship, the Nimrod. After marrying Eliza Merrit in 1840, he had 13 children and later served as a Member of Parliament for the Far North from 1861 to 1866.
Butler Point Whaling Museum
The Butler Point Whaling Museum, along with its historic house and gardens, have been lovingly restored and cared for by the Ferguson family for five decades. Our host, Jan Ferguson, offers private tours that provide a rich and immersive experience, taking visitors back to the days of New Zealand’s whaling industry, with a special focus on Mangōnui.
The Museum’s collection was of particular interest to our Ika Moana Ika Whenua project. It offered insights into taonga Māori and objects crafted from whale bone and baleen. This private collection, developed over more than 50 years, is thoughtfully curated and beautifully displayed. We were able to test some of these items of unknown origin to determine the species from which they might be made. We may discover that some are from Northern, rather than our Southern species, as global trade was in full swing when many of these objects were created.
Importantly, the Museum also acknowledges Māori occupation of Butler Point, once the site of a pā named Moehuri, after the Ngāti Kahu Rangatira. I felt this was done with genuine respect and care.
Butler Point is a great place to learn about the whaling era, connecting stories from the Far North to the American whaling industry, and places like New Bedford. Watch out for a future blog on that! If you want to know more about Butler Point Whaling Museum, visit their website.
Uncover the past to understand it
Something I took away from this experience was that archaeology helps us uncover the past, and museums help us to understand it. Also, being able to meet and work with the next generation is an important part of the work we do as archaeologists and museum staff; they are the future leaders, and we need to provide opportunities for them to explore possibilities and follow their dreams.
Why not provide a map showing the location of Butler point, house, dig etc