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Story: Taniwha

'He tarakona'

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'He tarakona'

In 1846, Mananui Te Heuheu Tūkino II and his followers were killed by a landslide on Kākaramea mountain, above Waihī. Te Rangikāheke, a Ngāti Rangiwewehi scholar, suggested that the landslide had been caused by a taniwha. He sketched out what it looked like, and noted that this was what Europeans referred to as a ‘tarakona’ (a transliteration of ‘dragon’).

Using this item

Auckland Council Libraries − Tāmaki Pātaka Kōrero o Tāmaki Makaurau, Sir George Grey Special Collections

Reference: 7-A3159

Permission of Auckland City Libraries Tāmaki Pātaka Kōrero must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Basil Keane, Taniwha – Ngārara – giant reptiles, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/10883/he-tarakona (accessed 25 June 2026).

Story by Basil Keane, published 1 March 2009.