Story: East Coast places

Kōiwi reburial

Kōiwi reburial

In 2007, 160-year-old graves, many of children, and remnants of buildings were uncovered when new classrooms were being built at Tolaga Bay Area School. The buildings were probably those of a mission settlement established by the Reverend Charles Baker in 1843, and the dead were likely to have been Māori who had been living at the mission. The kōiwi (human remains) were subsequently reburied in a community ceremony. In this photo Arai Parata-Walker hands one of the wahakura kōiwi (woven baskets containing remains) to teacher Rawiri Coleman.

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Tolaga Bay Area School & Kuranui

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How to cite this page:

Monty Soutar, 'East Coast places - Tolaga Bay', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/33503/koiwi-reburial (accessed 19 April 2024)

Story by Monty Soutar, updated 1 Mar 2015