Wairau Bar, Archaeological settlement at Wairau River delta, New Zealand
Wairau Bar is a gravel bar at the mouth of the Wairau River where it meets Cloudy Bay on New Zealand's South Island. This roughly 19-hectare site, stretching about 1.1 kilometers, holds the remains of an early human settlement with human skeletons and over 2,000 artifacts.
The area was settled around 1280 when explorers from eastern Polynesia established a village here. This makes Wairau Bar one of New Zealand's earliest known human settlements.
The site reveals how early Māori communities honored their deceased and maintained connections to their eastern Polynesian roots. Walking through the area, you can sense the deep cultural continuity that linked these settlers to their ancestral homeland.
The archaeological area is protected and requires official permissions for research activities. You can explore the site through organized educational tours led by specialists who explain the findings.
DNA analysis reveals the founding population consisted of hundreds of people, far larger than researchers had previously thought. This discovery reshapes our understanding of how quickly and extensively the early Polynesian communities spread across New Zealand.
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