New life to be carved out for 45,000-year-old giant

PREHISTORIC MONSTER: This huge kauri stump and trunk dug up near Awakino was transported to a Kaihu kauri mill and gallery. PICTURE/MICHAEL CUNNINGHAM

A 40-tonne lump of kauri dragged from peat swamps near Awanui turned heads as it was trucked from the Far North and via Whangarei to Nelson's Kaihu Kauri, north of Dargaville.

A stump cut off a whole trunk, and weighing 40 tonnes on its own, the 45,000-year-old giant log might now be milled for a variety of uses - furniture, architecture, sculpture, bowls and other turned tableware or decorations.

"Right now it's just a raw piece," swamp kauri extraction and milling expert Nelson Parker said.

The remaining 45-plus tonne length of trunk is still on-site "near Awanui", and will be picked up by another buyer, he said.

Mr Parker, who has a considerable stockpile of "stumps" at his kauri yard and gallery, said he had people keeping an eye out for swamp kauri or dead or dying trees.

"We're just grabbing what we can. You have to get things things when you can."

The long shank of trunk delivered to his yard yesterday is bigger than many, he said. The centrepiece of his Kaihu showroom is a standing trunk weighing 35 tonnes.

Most swamp kauri is recovered from peatland swamps but can be found in other locations and waterways, too.

As long as extraction does not involve more than 5000cu m of earthworks or lower the water table, kauri can be dug up as of right.