MYSTERIES of ANCIENT NEW ZEALAND and THE PACIFIC

Ok this could be related to all them stargate rummurs, other dimentions etc, it appares waitaha had a system for in which man/women could access these places.....to gain knowledge....

Its the Story of How the Wananga(House of Learning) in maori mythology that resonates with the story of moses reciving the 2 stones from heaven on mount sini, the original whare wananga was built with 2 stones as its base stone/corner stone, these same stones were used as the base stones of the CROSSHOUSE AT MIRINGA TE KAKARA!

Ill post related info shortly....


Te Moemoea

The little dreaming

Inside the sacred cavern, the mokopuna was taken into the depth of the whanau and hapu systems. Very gently, the ancient teacher talks of the wonder and the beauty that awaits those who are mentally and physically prepared for the journey of the dreamer.

The slightest shiver, either physical or spiritual, and the elder teachers would immediately abort the dream journey, for it was not the journey of the faint hearted or the ill prepared. In some special cases the mokopuna was not informed of the teachers' change of mind, for they too have their own counsel to answer to.

If the journey was postponed because of a decision of the elders rather than the hesitaition of the mokopuna, the moko was allowed to have a second attempt at performing the final rituals of the dream journey. However, it was not often that a second attempt was given to the tauira, for the journey has firm tikanga that was adhered to by all of the teachers of Wananga.

If the kaupapa and tikanga were all correct and the teachers were happy with the take, the mokopuna recites the ancient karakia in response to the prompting by the ancient one, and when completed, the teacher then messages the dreamer with special oils and scents and gently presses the cover over the opening, closing the door of the Wananga in karakia.

No farewells of any form exist in the Wananga, for it was the time of the Autua. It was not the time of the human beings learning to exist as the special forms that they were in the great pattern of the universe.

Leaving the dreamer to dream of the great stories that will be, and the dreams that will become, the seconds, minutes and hours pass into days, and the days become almost a lost memory, for the mokopuna dreamer is gone on the trails of the ancestors, talking with the people, plants, animals, insects and the unseen, holding onto the thin cord, taura, that binds his essence with the body and cave of dreams.

Whispers Of Waitaha ~ Traditions Of A Nation

THE WHARE-WANANGA
OR HOUSE OF TEACHING OR LEARNING; THE MAORI COLLEGE.


CHAPTER I.
Introduction—The ancient houses of teaching—The Whare-wānanga, and its methods—The Pō, or ages, or æons of darkness—The months, etc.—The Whare-maire—The Whare-porukuruku.

[THE following is the teaching of Moihi Te Matorohanga (who will be referred to in the future as 'the Sage'), of Wai-rarapa, East Coast of New Zealand, on the subject of the Maori College, in which the young lads who shewed a disposition towards learning, and had been observed to be accomplished in telling stories, etc., were taught by the old Priests (or Tohungas) all that tended towards making them accomplished in the higher knowledge that was necessary to the chiefs and priests.

This teaching was divided into two branches as follows:—

1. Te Kauwae-runga 2. Te Kauwae-raro

(the simple translation of which is, the upper-jaw, and the lower-jaw). These branches were also sometimes designated, Te Kauhanga-runga, and Te Kauhanga-raro.* The expressions had a clear meaning to the Maoris, the first representing everything pertaining to the gods, the heavens, the origin of all things, the creation of man, the science of astronomy, and the record of time, etc. The second (Te Kauwae-raro) deals with the history, properly so called, of the people, their genealogies, migrations, the tapu, and all knowledge pertaining to terrestrial matters. We may thus say that the first represents 'Celestial things,' the second 'Terrestrial things'; though, as will be seen, the distinction is not always adhered to.


[link to www.sacred-texts.com]


TANE ASCENDS TO THE UPPERMOST HEAVEN.

After the events described above, the ascent of Tāne-nui-a-rangi (68) to Te Toi-o-nga-rangi was considered by the gods. Whiro-te-tipua (6) was most urgent that he should go on before; so he proceeded by way of the Taepatanga [edge of the sky] of the Heavens to climb up above. Whiro had proceeded on his way for a long distance, when Tāne told his elder brethren, Tawhiri-matea, Tama-kaka and Tupai-a-tau that they ought to start. So they went, aided by the family of Para-wera-nui ['a mighty southerly tempest.'—see Journal Polynesian p. 128 Society, Vol. XVI., p. 58] who carried them along [taiapo, i.e., by the legs and arms, or arm in arm]; by way of the Ara-tiatia [way of steps]. That family is as follows; it was they who bore their parent [Tāne—not necessarily their father] to Te Toi-o-nga-rangi:—

Titi-parauri (the black whirlwind)
Titi-mata-kake (the ascending whirlwind)
Titi-matangi-nui (the great windy whirlwind)
Titi-aru-rangi33 (the whirlwind ascending to heaven)

These then were the families of Tawhiri-matea, who carried Tāne to the Pu-motomoto [the entrance] of Tawhiri-rangi [guard-house to the uppermost heaven]. His companions were Uru-ao (51), Rangi-ihiihi-matua (? 27), Tu-kapua (40), Tawhiri-matea (7), Taka-wai-rangi and Te Ataata-o-te-rangi; these last accompanied Tane to Rangi-naonao-ariki [the third heaven counting downwards] to Kautu and Tapuhi-kura, who were the spirits whose duty it was to take [Tāne] to Tauru-o-te-rangi [the name of the entrance into the third heaven], where Tāne was purified by Kautu and Tapuhi-kura. Tawhiri-matea, Uru-ao and Rangi-ihiihi-matua returned from here to Earth, whilst Te Ataata-o-te-rangi and Taka-wai-rangi carried Tāne to Tiritiri-o-matangi [heaven below the summit].

[In the meantime] Whiro had ascended to Rangi-nui and Rangi-tamaku [the two lowest heavens] where he learnt that Tāne had passed on before him; he followed to Rangi-parauri [tenth heaven in descent] but did not overtake him. Here his son-in-law said to him, "Go back! You cannot succeed, for that man [Tāne] has been consecrated above on Maunga-nui by Rua-tau and Rehua." At this Whiro was very distressed and wroth; he ordered the Tini-o-Poto to follow in pursuit of Tāne, they are:—

O Naonao (Mosquito) O Kēa (the great Parrot)
O Rō (the Ant) O Kērangi (the Hawk)
O Peketua (Centipede) O Karearea (Sparrow-hawk)
O Pepe-te-muimui (Prionoplus) O Peka (the Bat)
O Pekepeke-haratua (Daddy-long-legs) O Poupou (the Owl)34
O Taunga-hua (not known)

This was the war-party of Whiro which he sent to follow Tāne, to peck and draw his blood—to kill him. The war-party went on and p. 129 ascended the horizon of Rangi-tiritiri-o-matangi [first heaven below the summit]; and there attacked Tāne; but they could not approach near him—they were whirled away by the Tini-o-Parauri [the many of Parauri—the great gales]. They could not get near him.

Tāne now reached Te Pu-motomoto of Tawhiri-rangi [the guard-house of the uppermost heaven], and there entered the house, where were Rua-tau, Aitu-pawa, Rehua, Puhao-rangi, Oho-mai-rangi, Te Pura-o-te-rangi, Te Rangi-haupapa and very many other Whatu-kura [guardian-gods of the Supreme God Io]. Taka-wai-rangi and Te Ataata-o-te-rangi returned from here to Tiritiri-ki-matangi [first heaven below the summit] to await the return of Tāne-nui-a-rangi.

And also, the war-party of Whiro-te-tipua returned to Rangi-nao-nao-ariki [third heaven] to await Tāne on his return.



TANE RECEIVES NEW NAMES.

Now, when Tāne entered the guard-house, Tawhiri-rangi, by way of the koro-pihanga35 of the rearmost part of the ridge of the house; he had now arrived at the Te Toi-o-nga-rangi [the summit of Heaven]. He was taken by Rua-tau, Pu-hao-rangi and Oho-mai-rangi to Te Wai-o-Rongo [the waters of Rongo] and there again purified, and the following additional names given him:—

1. Tāne-nui-a-rangi (Great-Tāne-of-Heaven)
2. Tāne-matua (Tāne-the-parent-of-mankind—see infra)
3. Tāne-te-wānanga-a-rangi (Tāne-who-brought-knowledge-from-Heaven)
4. Tāne-te-waiora (Tāne-the-salvation)
5. Tāne-te-torokaha
6. Tāne-tahurangi
7. Tāne-maiki-roa

These are the names then given him; but the first one he had already received from Rua-tau and Rehua, when he was sanctified on Mount Maunganui, as already described.



TANE AND IO.

After the above occurrence, Tāne was conducted into Matangi-reia [the house of Io—Sun's path in the Heavens] where Io was awaiting him. On his arrival Io asked him:—

"By whom are we?"36

p. 130

"By the Sky-father and the Earth-mother is thy child, O Io-the-father, ē ī!"

"Who is thy companion?"

"My elder brother, Whiro-te-tipua. He went by way of the Taepatanga of the Heavens, to ascend."

"Thy elder brother will not succeed; the winds of the conjoint Heavens blow too strongly."

Io added, "What is thy reason for ascending here?"

"The sacred contents of the 'baskets' pertaining to the Sky-father and Earth-mother to obtain; hence have I ascended up to thee, O Io, ē ī!"

Io then said, "Let us go to the Rauroha" [space outside Io's dwelling, the marae or plaza], and when they got there, then for the first time was seen how numerous were the Whatu-kura [male guardian gods] and Marei-kura [female guardian goddesses] there staying. Tāne was again purified in Rauroha, and after this had been accomplished, they entered the temple Rangiatea [treasure house, and the first of the Whare-wānanga—see introduction to Chapter I.]. It was here that the Whatu-kuras gave into Tāne's charge, the three 'baskets' and the two sacred stones. They were 'god-stones' [i.e., endowed with god-like and miraculous powers].



THE THREE 'BASKETS' AND TWO STONES.

These are the names of the three 'baskets' and two stones:—

1. The kete-uruuru-matua, of peace, of all goodness, of love.
2. The kete-uruuru-rangi (or tipua), of all prayers, incantations, ritual, used by mankind.
3. The kete-uruuru-tau (or tawhito), of the wars of mankind, agriculture, tree or wood-work, stone-work, earth-work—of all things that tend to well-being, life, of whatsoever kind.

[Te Matorohanga held that the original teaching of this branch was derived from the first created thoughts, which were good alone; it was afterwards that evil thoughts came into being. The Creator first gave man eyes in order to distinguish good from evil, and then the ngakau, or heart, to hold such knowledge.]

1. Te Whatu-kura, Huka-a-tai (the translation is, Foam-of Ocean).
2. Te Whatu-kura, Rehu-tai (the translation is, White-sea-mist).

These stones are both white in colour, like sea-foam, that is, they were white according to description handed down; they are stones that p. 131 may indicate either good or evil according to man's desire. They are sacred stones, and are used at the termination of the session of teaching, that is, the pupils are placed thereon when the classes of the Whare-wānanga break up. After the proper ritual of karakia, the stones are touched by the mouths of the pupils,37 and then the classes break up for the season.

[The kete, or 'baskets,' are the three great divisions of knowledge taught in the Maori College; we may call each kete a syllabus, which it nearly approaches, in fact, as briefly mentioned above. The two whatu, or stones, are said by the Scribe to be not ordinary stones of this earth, but were brought from Heaven. It was from them the Whatu-kura-a-Tāne and Whatu-kura-a-Tangaroa were made. In later times, of course, some uncommon stone would be used in the Whare-wānanga on which the pupils stood at the final ceremony before the session ended. It was supposed that contact with these stones gave măna, power, prestige, to the matter taught, besides enforcing the same on the memory.]



TANE RETURNS TO EARTH.

Now, after the three 'baskets' of the wānanga [knowledge] and the two stones had been acquired, the Whatu-kuras [gods] escorted Tāne-te-wānanga (68) and his properties to the next lower Heaven. Rua-tau, Rehua, Aitu-pawa were there, and a numerous host of other Whatu-kuras in the company. On reaching Tiritiri-o-matangi (second Heaven from the top) they found their friends, Taka-wai-rangi and Te Ataata, who had been joined by the descendants of Huru-te-arangi, daughter of Tapuhi-kura, younger brother of Rangi-tamaku [the eleventh Heaven below the summit] awaiting them.

These are that family:—

Titi-a-toa 7 Titi-mata-kaha
Titi-atamai Titi-kauru-nui
Titi-matangi-nui Titi-roro-hau
Titi-mata-ura Titi-te-apu-hau
Titi-parauri Titi-te-apu-nui
6 Titi-puhi-kura 12 Titi-te-apu-parauri38

Those are the family of Tawhiri-matea (7) [god of winds] and Parawera-nui [the stormy south wind] who are their parents; there p. 132 were many others besides. Te Matorohanga will be able to name them all in their ranks. Tapuhi-kura and the wife of Tarapae are the guardians of their grand-children [the winds] at Te Tihi-o-manono,39 where their house is named Mairiiri-kapua. The courtyard of their house is named Marae-nui; and they amuse themselves with whip-tops, Tahua-roa being the name of the court in which they play. The brow from which they gaze down on to the back of their ancestor [Rangi-to-maku, eleventh heaven from the summit] is named Paroro-rangi—it is in Rangi-naonao-ariki [the third heaven from the summit] that this family dwells.

Tāne-matua (68) and his companions, the Whatu-kuras, descended until they reached Rangi-te-wawana [the fourth heaven from the summit] where they were attacked by the war-party of Whiro-te-tipu (6)—these are their names:—

1. Pekepeke-mata-ruwai 3. Pekepeke-harakuku
2. Pekepeke-hau-rutua 4. Pekepeke-riwaru
5. Pekepeke-mata-nui

As soon as the war-party was discovered, it was assaulted by the company of Tāne-matua; the war-party of Whiro (6) was defeated at Te Rangi-haupapa, and the following brought down to earth as prisoners:—

1. Kāhu (the Hawk) 5. Kakapo (the night Parrot)
2. Karearea (Sparrow-Hawk) 6. Pekapeka (the Bat)
3. Matuku (the Crane) 7. Ruru (the Owl)
4. Kēa (the great Parrot) 8. Kakariki (Parrakeet)

The grandchildren of Kērangi (the hawk) were taken prisoners, they are:—

Waeroa (Mosquito) Wēta (wingless Locust)
Namu-poto (little Sand-fly) Pepe (Butterfly)
Naonao (Sand-fly) Rango (Blow-fly)
Rō (the Ant) Kawhitiwhiti (Grasshopper)

and other insects of that nature. The above is the reason they were brought here [are found here] on the earth.

And now the face of Rangi-nui [the sky above, lowest Heaven] flashed forth in brilliant red. Hence did Tupai (69), Uepoto (28), Tamakaka (63), Uru-roa, Tama-te-kapua (? 44), Tu-mata-uenga (11) Tangaroa (8), and Tawhiri-matua (7), know that the wānanga had been acquired by Tāne-matua (68). Great was the joy, and the rejoicing of the family of gods, even including those at Tu-te-aniwaniwa [the p. 133 dwelling-place of Whiro (6) and Uru-te-ngangana (1)]. But Whiro alone was not glad; he was continuously angry and jealous on account of the exceeding măna [power, prestige] that had accrued to Tāne-matua (68). And now Uru-ao (51) and Tupai took their trumpets and sounded a fanfare; they were named 'Te Wharara-o-te-rangi' [the arch of Heaven] and 'Pu-oro-rangi ' [trumpet sounding in Heaven]. The whole of the family of gods heard the trumpet blasts, and knew thereby that Tāne-matua had succeeded in his quest.

When the party arrived at the turuma40 of Whare-kura [the first temple built on earth], and after the purification ceremony, they entered Whare-kura and there suspended the three wānanga at the back of the temple, where also the two whatu [stones] were deposited. Whiro (6) demanded that the 'baskets' and stones should be delivered up to him. Tāne-matua (68) said to him, "Where are others to be found if we agree to that? It is sufficient that you have some of our elder brethren with you; the 'baskets' must be left with these members of our elder and younger brethren." Rongo-marae-roa (14) and Uru-te-ngangana (1) both consented to this. Whiro was very angry at this and returned home with two of the whatu [stones].41 After this the Whatu-kuras [gods] returned to Te Toi-o-nga-rangi [Uppermost Heaven].

[link to www.sacred-texts.com]

Hi bro, yes ive seen the links, veryinteresting indeed, i bumped it for tracking on pg1 lol.

I agree with everything you have said there, I see the same connections........., NZ seems to have more parts of the puzzle than any other.......

Its also interesting to note, that some maori tribes history say they followed a star here, there are traces of migration records going through Asia/Taiwan then down to NZ?

Did the journey happen to take 40 years?

hmmmm i say to myself lol

Just came accross info of two pyramids on the corramandal as well.......

#A1. What is presented on this web page:

If anyone asks you which country in the world is the most mysterious one, you probably would have a difficult choice to make. After all, you know about pyramids from Egypt, about mysterious stony monuments from South America, about the Great Wall of China and about all these mysteries that surround it, etc. But probably you never would imagine that miniature versions of mysteries from all these countries can also be found in New Zealand. And so, New Zealand has two small pyramids in the Coromandel, has ruins of a stony temple of the Machu Picchu style (like this one from Peru) in the Kaimanawa forests, has a miniature of the Great China Wall in Northland, has an explosion site which is even more spectacular than the famous 1908 explosion site from Tunguska in Central Siberia, and on top of all these puzzles it has also a lot of other mysteries which do not appear in other countries and which in New Zealand can be freely examined by all interested. So a popular image of New Zealand, that it is a country where almost everything is someone's monopole unaffordable to normal wallets, and where one can only see 1000 sheep per each citizen, is quite a misleading one. The problem is, however, that New Zealanders are strangely shy and humble when comes to the subject of mysteries present in their country. They do not brag about their mysteries. So in spite that New Zealand is actually full of mysteries, one needs to be very lucky to hear about them or to find a publication that describes any of them.

This web page is actually a preliminary report which summarises outcomes of my "private research" on New Zealand curiosities and mysteries (if one believes that there is such a thing as "private research" - as in the final count all research serve for the good of the entire humanity). In turn photographs that illustrate this web page represent the primary scientific evidence in support of my conclusions. This page is aimed at disclosing in what areas this research was already completed, and what outcomes it yielded. It also indicates where exactly in my scientific monographs the research on a given mystery is elaborated in more details (it provides free copies of these monographs to be downloaded from this web site). Furthermore, it furnishes the reader with detailed references to rather sparse sources of information and evidence, which are connected with a given mystery, such as newspaper articles, people connected with mysteries, place names, etc. Through providing all this, the page indicates types of mysterious sights and phenomena, that are worth seeing in New Zealand. After all, it is almost impossible to find anything about these mysterious sights and phenomena in tourist brochures or in official publications. While reading about these mysteries, the reader may check their exact locations from maps of New Zealand, which can be found on the web site www.linz.govt.nz. Because I am a scientist who thoroughly investigated each single mystery described below, together with presentation of each one of them I also provided my explanations as to what type of mechanism or phenomena is behind it. You are welcome to verify the merit of these my explanations.

[link to members.fortunecity.com]

There is a pyramid in Christchurch too. Pyramid Hill? is it called? It was an obvious pyramid to me. And also in the Northland near Taheke. There was a civilisation long ago made pyramids even could form faces in the Cliffs. I see the same ones here in Australia as I saw at Onehunga. Our history is nowhere near what we are taught. That is just the physical stuff. But what of our consciousness history which does not show itself too much in fossils. I saw a city of light near the Kaipara harbour. Light beings lived in these, maybe it was lost lemuria. There were many Pa s here too.
Just shows history is nothing like we think. A shaman was a time traveller and his or her dreaming was the revelation.

Hi angelman, thankyou very interesting, I have a interest in ancient pa sites, have visited quite a few around here, located hundreds more around the country, there are thousands identified ancient pa sites, and many more lost to the ruggered terrain.

Ive seen a pyramid on the way to auckland airport, sitting in the middle of an industrial area, thousands of people pass it everyday, I wonder why nobody notices it. When i first saw it, i was damm, thats a pyramid........then on the otherside of the auckland air port, there are the remains of a stone settlement....with stone walls the like found in scotland and england etc, both of theses site are easyly distingishable on google earth.



I think that info is recorded in Maori history, in the THE Nights of PO, a record of The age of darkness, subconsouse/unseen?.

[link to www.sacred-texts.com]

The history before the first dawn when there was no sun, no light...... which also resonates with the bible verse

"God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness." Genesis 1:4

Could also represent the serperation between consousness and sub-consouseness, and the fall of man from the garden of eden, where the Tree, T, t, x marks the spot, in the middle of the garden stands?

So its possible this conscouse that we are aware of now, has its roots/birth in the sub-consouse, these other dimentions?.

Its a long shot i know, but hay, just a thought.....good to hear from you angleman

Thanks for the pyramid info, my list of places to vist is growing by the day lol.

Hi all, just finished uploading this to youtube, from the area around Tarranaki, Mt Egmont, lots of ancient pa sites, some pyramid style.......

Added a bit of my own music for atmosphare, enjoy.....

Nice Vid Ra, good stuff !.

I'm getting itchy feet looking at all the stuff getting posted here.

I feel an explore comming on !!

All very interesting.
Thx, O/P.

Hiya ra,

Thanx heaps for keeping things going, i cant wait to read all you have posted.

Yeah i heard that they identified something like 600 pa sites in the new plymoth area, by some sort of satellite viewing. I will try and remember where i read it...

Hope you are having fun, cant wait to catch up with you x

Hello AC, thank you for that, it is such a fascinating thing , that once you learn a little bit, you just want to know more and more.. and the more you learn, the more fascinated you become. And what you learn about our ancient past is not only history, it takes you on spiritual lourneys too.

For people like ra and i, it is a profound experience.

Hello angelman,

Great to have you aboard, welcome brother and thanx for the awesome info.
I know that pyramid by ak airport, took photos of it a few years ago.

And somewhere on this thread are aerial photos of the celtic settlement that you saw the ruims of.

I wil find them and repost them soon for you.

Kaitiaki, no reasearch involved here, just supplying the info i know so well and want to share.

Always learning more though, its awesome and so spiritually expanding and also empowering to uncover the truth about our country.

I happen to like green eye'd monsters... so will you shut the hell up so other sane people can learn a little about New Zealand..

I second that liking for green eyed monsters! Lol. If you people don't like this thread stay the hell off of it. :)

Third! Hi, T! Glad to see you back. Lots of reading to do!

Hey T, True ?! you must have some good remembering cells ! lol, some really good reading here Bro !, been linking off some of your stuff !.
Like i needed another distraction lol.
Cheers Bro, excellent stuff.
Aotearoa just got a LOT more interesting !

Cheers bro, much love to you

Love you sister xoxox

Its only one person doing it all, just changes country constantly.

Hiya TB, i like the idea of you having r and r time, reading in your favourite place xoxox

I find it interesting that there are nothing like Pa sites in Australia. Just the same when i went to some on kaipara I did not feel they were made by maoris but made earlier and used by Maoris.
The large foot fossils you mention Ra were probably more like Bigfoot than human. Its interesting they were called wollumbin in the Bathurst area as that is the Aboriginal name for Mt warning. Wollumbin. I have been there many times and often felt the presence of the Yeti like beings. I have slept in my car and felt them looking in at night. But they are not physical more like in the fairy realm now. They are very shy but have like smell sensors to warn them when people are around and avoid them.
I will visit the Raglan New Plymouth coast in my next visit.Just looking for a vehicle to sleep in.I dont like back packers much.

Hiya angelman, a lot of folk feel that there were celtic and other settlements here a long time ago.

Hence the stone ruins and the like all over nz

You can often see stuff like that in the countryside, once you know what to look for.

Same with the stone mounds etc that were part of the trig systems that were once in use here.

I wonder if australia was ever mapped out in trig like nz and many parts of the world were?

Hi tauranga, good to see you :)

Im heading down your way on the 11th nov to meet my family(Dad and Sister), I should be able to visit you, around 2-3pm in the afternoon, could you give me an Email, so we can exchange futher details, thank you.

[email protected]

Thanks Kaitiaki

Me too bro :)

Hello ra!

Yep i will email you.

Im trying to catch up everywhere but its taking time..

Still haven't read all that awesome stuff ynu posted..

Plenty of pa sites round here,mt maunganui is an ancient one and so is bowentown at waihi

Sounds great angelman, when you come out this way, give me an email, ild love to do the Riverland Adventure ride again on the quad bikes, or some exploreing with you:)

Yes indeed the time line doesnt fit in with some of them Pa sites, some of them would have taken thousands of men to build, I think some were conquored from preveious inhabitants, Koru Pa is an interesting site, made of stone built into the side of a river bend.

WHAT IS KORU PA?

The best description or comparison one could offer would be call it an Irish Rath/ Cashel with Souterrains (tunnels for subterranean living or storage) and almost completely surrounded by a river moat. The builders took a hillock peninsula and laboriously carved it into many flat levels of tiers or platforms, bordered by steep earth embankment walls. They then lined the steep walls, complete with their souterrain doorways, with interlocking stones that have withstood the ravages of centuries of root pressure and natural erosion. Around the base of Koru PA, further earthen ramparts and "head-height" vertical walls of packed earth were made and these too were sheathed in enduring stone. In overall design, Koru PA is very much like some of the earliest known Irish defensive enclosures called cashels, which were the forerunners of castles. In Ireland, some of these structures can date to as early as 2000-3000 BC

The multi-terraced and walled defensive enclosure of Koru PA in Taranaki, New Zealand, is mostly surrounded by a flowing river, which is quite reminiscent of the obstacle posed by a castle moat. The style of construction is quite similar to the very early Rath/Cashels (defensive enclosures) of Europe, which were the forerunners of castles. There are at least 5 Rath-type (earthen defensive) enclosures some with laboriously excavated ditches to flow water around them, in close proximity to Koru PA. Most of these are not even marked on archaeological maps. One of these is huge and would take, perhaps, several thousand defenders to ward off a breach of its perimeter. In Ireland alone there are estimated to be about 40,000 Bronze Age or Iron Age defensive enclosures, many with souterrain tunnel systems, still in evidence. Similarly, in New Zealand, estimates for the number of forts, defensive positions and excavations, many incorporating traditional European hillfort design concepts, range to about 10,000.

[link to www.celticnz.co.nz]

Got pictures of the one at mt manuganui Tauranga, must of been a big population there as the midens run half way up the mount, shells everywhere, I go past bowentown waihi on my way to Tauranga, didnt no there were pa's in thst area, might have a look when im up that way,

I gota go now friend, catch up soon :)

Ok ra. I have emailed you.

The book ancient celtic nz has a great aerial photo of bowentown hilltop pa site.

Bump.