The medal, still in remarkably good condition, was gifted to a rangatira by James Cook in 1769, according to the writings of Endeavour's botanist Joseph Banks.
The medal must have been discarded or lost soon after it was gifted, said Mr Jones.
He said archaeologists working at Whangara 35 years ago were trying to balance the narratives of discovery by Abel Tasman and James Cook with the traditions and landscapes of Polynesian origin.
“In the last few years I have had the privilege of writing heritage assessments for the first European discoveries — the first European landing places in New Zealand.
“I balanced the value of these discoveries with the first discoveries by East Polynesians some 4000 to 5000 years before Tasman — discoveries by the people who are the direct ancestors of New Zealand Maori.
“Their stories are written in tradition and cultural landscape throughout New Zealand.
“Ta Apirana Ngata, in one of his Rauru Nui a Toi lectures delivered in the 1930s, said ‘Whangara is one of the great putahi [meeting, originating places) of the Maori people . . . one of the main links between Aotearoa and Hawaiki'.”
Mr Jones said Ngata's meaning could be seen in the naming of the Whangara landscape and its associations with the traditional figure and tipuna Kahutia Te Rangi, also known as Paikea.
Paikea is one of the central figures in Rangitane, Rongowhakaata, Ngati Porou and Ngai Tahu whakapapa.
The iwi is Ngati Konohi, which is part of Te Aitanga o Hauiti.
“Paikea's story is one of rivalry between brothers on their long voyage from Hawaiki; at sea, Ruatapu took the lives of his brothers by disabling the waka and leaving them to drown.
“Only one brother, Kahutia Te Rangi, survived after he called upon a whale (tohora, paikea) to carry him to shore at Ahuahu. Ruatapu died after invoking great waves to catch Paikea.
“In popular culture, Kahu, short for Kahutia Te Rangi, is the young heroine of the film of Witi Ihimaera's novel The Whale Rider.
“She is played with a fey luminosity by Keisha Castle-Hughes (in the movie Whaler Rider for which Castle-Hughes received a Best Actress Oscar nomination).
“Like her namesake Kahutia Te Rangi, she is engaged in what will turn out to be a life and death struggle over succession mana.
“She is a woman (but) can her koro/grandfather pass traditional knowledge on to her?
“Koro thinks not. In the novel, Kahu jumps on and leads a great whale away from the beach.
“Later she is tossed up and apparently drowned.
“Her koro learns his lesson in Ihimaera's fable.”
Mr Jones said that through landscape references, traditions and in popular culture “we can easily say that at Whangara there are accounts and messages about Polynesian voyaging who are the equal of James Cook”.
“In many places throughout New Zealand similar stories can also be told.
“It must be said, however, that very few of the names are contained in the landscape as officially mapped and maybe something could be done about that.”
■ International Council on Monuments and Sites is a non-governmental organisation of heritage professionals engaged in the conservation of places of cultural heritage value and dedicated to the conservation of the world's historic monuments and sites.
