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Story: East Coast places

Arched rock, Tolaga Bay: 1769

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Arched rock, Tolaga Bay: 1769

A drawing of an arched rock at Tolaga Bay was made by Herman Dietrich Spöring, a naturalist on James Cook’s first voyage to the Pacific, in October 1769. This engraving was made in 1784. Spöring died at Batavia (now Jakarta) on the return voyage to Europe, in January 1771.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: B-098-024

by Herman Diedrich Sporing

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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How to cite this page

Monty Soutar, East Coast places – Tolaga Bay, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/33500/arched-rock-tolaga-bay-1769 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Monty Soutar, published 23 August 2011, updated 1 March 2015.