TARAWERA RELICS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXI, Issue 21876, 11 August 1934, Page 12

TARAWERA RELICS

ERUPTION RECALLED

RESULT OF EXCAVATIONS HOTEL OVEN UNEARTHED SHARES . AND OLD FURNITURE [by telegram—OWN correspondent] ROTORUA, Friday Recent extensive excavation at Wairoa on /Mr. R. Smith's property, part of which is on the site of the native village which was buried at the time of the eruption of Tarawera in June, ]BB6, has brought to light some interesting relics which recall very vividly the terrible disaster that overwhelmed the village of Wairoa and its fertile valley, laid waste the surrounding and destroyed the famous Pink and White Terraces at Rotomahana.

Some time ago Mr. Smith, in clearing a part of bis land for a motorists' camping site, came across some interesting finds in connection with the eruption, and recently further excavations have' been made and several buildings have been unearthed. The weight of /mud on the roofs of the buildings at' the time of the upheaval caused them to collapse, in consequence of which several lives were lost.

A feature in the recent discoveries is that a row of large poplar trees have grown up from fencing posts that were evidently put into the ground green prior to the eruption, and there has also been part of a house with mounds of mud near it that give a distinct outline of buried hedges and .a garden. Barman's House Found

A small whare has been unearthed which contains part of ■ a chimney. dinner plates, two oldfashioned tumblers, and domestic utensils have been found in the building. A punga whare has also been unearthed wjtli some of tho walls intact. Broken window glass was found, also a camp-oven with chimney, and a mantelpiece, upon which were a metal bangle, two stone ink pots, and several Email glass bottles. A fern bed was on the floor And some pieces of rotted blankets or rugs. Facing the road near the site upon which stood the Potomahana Hotel was discovered a small blacksmith's shop. The building was built of wood and iron, and in it was found a quantity of rusted iron chains, crowbars, a mattock, cross-cut saw, wedges, and other articles. The house in which lived the bar- . man, who' was employed at the Kotomahana Hotel at the time of the disaster, has also been found. Ihe building "was of wood and raupo roof, the large beam of which is on the floor. Part of the walls are intact and there is a window with broken glass. In- this building was found an iron bedstead, china washing bowl, willowpattern plates, and otber household utensils. Contents of Fireballs An interesting find is that of the baker's oven, which belonged to tne Rotomahana Hotel, and which was housed in a building of iron, -svood lined, and sitifeted at the back of: the hotel premises. Almost immediately in front of this stood the room in which the inmates of the hotel sheltered on the night of the disaster, and which they were forced to leave owing to the heaVy bombardment of stones and fireballs upon the roof. The baker's oven is in good state of preservation, being built of large sandstone bricks. There is at least a foot of volcanic mud inside the oven, and if this was cleared there would be room for several men to crawl inside. It has an arched brick roof, and a good part of the wooden flooring is intact. Scales, weights, a child's boot, iron oven-plates and part of an old newspaper were fouirad, but unfortunately the newspaper was so rotted that it fell to pieces on. being handled. Some spall outbuildings, and two large galvanised iron tanks have also been unearthed. Several fireballs of from sin. to (3in. in diameter have been found; on being broken open they were found to contain a piece of pumice in the centre. Buried Six Feet Deep A commencement has also been made 'at unearthing some other buildings in close proximity to the site of the hotel. Some of the articles founcl are in good state of preservation, although they have been buried in the volcanic mud for nearly 50 years. The buildings that have been unearthed have been buried at almost a uniform depth ranging from about sft. to 6ft. In some instances the cooking utensils found in the fireplaces were in the position in which they were left after the evening meal prior to the eruption. The inhabitants had to make hurried exit from their homes in the middle of the night, and their possessions were buried with their dwellings. As far as is known tho natives made ✓ no attempt to <get any of their possessions later, and, except in one instance, where some valuable tribal greenstone ornaments were recovered, nothing was done to disturb the homes that were destroyed', in the disaster.