Kōrero: Geology – overview

Trilobite Rock

Trilobite Rock

The oldest fossils in New Zealand are of middle Cambrian age, about 505 million years old. They were discovered in 1948 at Trilobite Rock, an isolated limestone outcrop in the Cobb valley, shown in the photograph. As the name indicates, the fossils discovered were tiny trilobites – an extinct form of marine arthropod that lived in the Paleozoic era. Since the discovery, a number of other fossil localities have been found in and around the valley.

Trilobite Rock is now a reserve administered by the Department of Conservation, and collecting fossils is no longer permitted.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Private collection
Photograph by Bruce Hayward

This item has been provided for private study purposes (such as school projects, family and local history research) and any published reproduction (print or electronic) may infringe copyright law. It is the responsibility of the user of any material to obtain clearance from the copyright holder.

Ngā whakaahua me ngā rauemi katoa o tēnei kōrero

Te tuhi tohutoro mō tēnei whārangi:

Eileen McSaveney and Simon Nathan, 'Geology – overview - New Zealand’s oldest rocks', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/mi/photograph/8297/trilobite-rock (accessed 30 March 2024)

He kōrero nā Eileen McSaveney and Simon Nathan, i tāngia i te 12 Jun 2006