Ancient waka to find permanent home at Dunedin marae, six years after being unearthed

A historic waka — believed to be the second oldest in New Zealand — is being moved to a permanent home after being excavated in 2014.

The boat was found at Papanui inlet six years ago and had been transferred into a water solution for preservation.

Today, a team of about 15 people delicately transferred the waka to its new home at the Otakou Marae on the Dunedin Peninsula.

Rachel Wesley, chair of Te Rūnanga o Ōtākou at Otago University, said it had been in the preservation solution for longer than expected, and that it was good to see if moved to its final resting place.

"It's been a long time coming," she said.

"It's a really tangible connection to our past, and to our wāhi tūpuna."

The site where the waka was found was a village of Kāti Māmoe, which oral history states was eventually amalgamated into Ngai Tahu by intermarriage.

The waka will now be completely dried out and work will be done to put it on display in a purpose-built museum on the marae.

Wesley said it was hoped that the marae could also preserve other artifacts for display, as more were being recovered from the inlet.