Māori timber workers stand with Europeans outside an early water-powered sawmill in this 1840s engraving of a drawing by Samuel Charles Brees. Māori were involved in the timber industry from its earliest days, first hauling logs and loading them onto ships, later felling and milling trees. In the first half of the 19th century they often controlled the timber trade in their tribal areas, bargaining with Europeans over cutting rights, port fees and labour.
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Alexander Turnbull Library
Reference:
A-109-033
Hand-coloured engraving after a drawing by Samuel Charles Brees
Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.
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