Pearl Shell Fishing Lure

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(Tairua lure) AU1785

This pearl shell fishing lure was excavated in the late 1950’s from an ancient settlement site at Tairua, on the Coromandel Peninsula. The Tairua lure is made from a type of pearl shell not found in New Zealand waters and hails from northern seas. A shell located close to the fishing lure was dated and revealed that it arrived on New Zealand shores some 600 years ago with the early settlers from the north. The fishing lure would have been an essential tool for the Polynesian navigators as they voyaged further south on their canoes. Links to Maori Natural History and Pacific Lifeways.