THE Hauraki Plains Gazette. With which is Incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY. “Public Service.” MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1943. CAVE DRAWINGS

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 52, Issue 32310, 8 September 1943, Page 4

THE Hauraki Plains Gazette. With which is Incorporated THE OHINEMURI GAZETTE. MONDAY, WEDNESDAY, FRIDAY. “Public Service.” MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1943. CAVE DRAWINGS

State assistance to any local body, or, for the matter of that, to any individual who will take action to protect cave drawings anywhere in the Dominion should be assured. The engineer of the Mackenzie County Council recently drew attention to the fact that Moriori drawings in certain caves in that part of the country are threatened with damage or destruction.

A member of the council stated that already some of the best of the drawings had been removed to American museums. There can be very few places where these drawings exist in New Zealand, the best known being those in North Canterbury, those in the Mackenzie Country and some on the fringe of the Kaingaroa Plains, south of Rotorua.

Far too much, in the form of Maori weapons, tools and other things, has been allowed to leave the country. There are splendid collections in museums in both Berlin and Vienna that might possibly be brought back some day. But the cave drawings should be protected carefully where they are, and the matter is one that should have the attention of interested organisations.