It was not the dead woman's home.
"The woman's death is being treated as a homicide inquiry at this stage until a post-mortem examination is able to establish the exact cause of death," said Detective Senior Sergeant David Greig.
The post-mortem will take place in Wellington this afternoon.
"The outcome of that examination will have a bearing on where the inquiry goes from here," he said.
The woman's body was covered by a large tarpaulin and remained on the lawn of the house until it was removed last night.
"A detailed scene examination will be conducted today and we expect it will take most of the day and perhaps tomorrow to complete it," Mr Greig said.
The examination will be conducted by Gisborne CIB staff.
The inquiry team has spoken to a number of people who were at the house when the woman died.
"We are still piecing together the circumstances of her death.
"We were called to the house as a result of an alleged altercation between several people.
"The woman was present when that altercation occurred."
Police have interviewed neighbours.
"The woman was a visitor at the house," Mr Greig said.
"It was not her home."
Police would like to hear from anyone who was in that area of Riverdale about 2pm yesterday.
The cordon at the Dalrymple Road-Atkinson Street corner will remain in place until the scene examination is complete.
- The Gisborne Herald
