A 1 NEWS investigation has led to the return of a historic cannonball, missing for three years, after the alleged thief watched the news.
On Saturday, Pātaka Museum’s Laureen Sadlier was “relieved” when a man returned the stolen artefact.
“I got a phone call that someone had come into the museum to bring the cannonball after he’d the seen news article on TV,” she said.
The archaeologist who first examined the artefact, Mary O’Keeffe, was “gobsmacked” when she found out.
“All we wanted was for it to be returned and here it is. How neat is that?” she said
The rare artefact has been retrieved after featuring in a 1 NEWS story.
The 56kg cannonball was unearthed three years ago from a Porirua Stream by New Zealand Transport Agency contractors as they cleared a path for the new Transmission Gully highway.
O’Keeffe examined the object over several months and said she believed it was a cannonball from a battle in 1846 between Māori leader Te Rangihaeata and Crown forces.
“I will do a little bit more research on it. I will see if I can get a specialist metal expert to do some analysis of the metal itself,” O’Keeffe said.
Pātaka Museum is the current care holder for the cannonball, and Sadlier said it’s an asset to the exhibition.
“We have a very strong historical iwi-based exhibition here, and the cannonball highlights the European story,” she said.
As for where the object will be permanently stored, O’Keefe said that conversation will be held by local iwi.
Ngāti Toa’s Te Waari Carkeek said he was relieved to hear of the artefact’s return.
“Whoever took the cannonball has been moved, to be able to return it to the community,” he said.
Carkeek would now like to see the cannonball placed in the right historical context.
This week's turn of events has also been welcomed by those in charge of the Transmission Gully project.
“It’s a rare and important object that adds to the story of Battle Hill, a significant landmark on the road," a spokesperson for the project said. "We’re grateful for its safe recovery, and that this piece of history can be preserved for all New Zealanders.”
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