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Story: Waikato places

Carved pou

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Carved pou

This carved pou (post) was found in the Hamilton suburb of Chartwell, on the east bank of the Waikato River, around 1960. It is elaborately carved, with pāua-shell eyes, and could have been used to mark a boundary or a restricted area. It is one of the relics of intensive pre-1864 Māori occupation of the area now covered by Hamilton city.

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Waikato Museum - Te Whare Taonga o Waikato

Permission of Waikato Museum – Te Whare Taonga o Waikato must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Nancy Swarbrick, Waikato places – Hamilton, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/object/27300/carved-pou (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Nancy Swarbrick, published 26 May 2010, updated 11 June 2015.