Photograph taken in Tuamarina by William Collie to document the site of the 1843 Wairau Affray.
Collie is standing on the side of the river where a group of Ngāti Toa were assembled when representatives of the New Zealand Company approached in an attempt to arrest rangatira Te Rauparaha and Te Rangihaeata. In the distance a pyramid-shaped monument stands on the hill in memory of the twenty-two Europeans who were killed in the events that followed. Four Māori also lost their lives.
The 'Wairau Affray' was the first armed conflict between Māori and Europeans following the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and is considered the first of the New Zealand Wars.
This image is from a set of four that were copied for the Wellington Independent newspaper according to an 1871 article digitised for PapersPast.
Date1871PhotographerWilliam CollieReference50010-751Holding InstitutionWellington City LibrariesOriginal negative / print reference numberF162 / WP11987Original print size (mm)251 x 186Map[1]
