The memorial is located at the foot of what once was a bluff called Rerenga Ora Iti, Britomart Point, near where the British representatives reportedly came ashore.
Unveiled earlier this year, the memorial is a place where all people can go and learn the history of Auckland-Tāmaki Makaurau on the edge of the Waitematā Harbour.
Ports of Auckland CEO Tony Gibson said, "The Port is proud to have been able to work alongside Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei hand in hand to create this special monument celebrating the founding of our city and commemorating the contributions of Apihai Te Kawau.
"It symbolises the coming together of people from different backgrounds, different heritages, different whanau – all united by our common ancestry and here today to work together towards a stronger future."
The founding of Auckland:
In 1840 New Zealand's first governor, William Hobson, chose the Auckland isthmus as the site for his new capital.
He was attracted by the fertile soil, the waterways and the large Māori populations close by.
Hobson renamed the place after his patron, Lord Auckland, first Lord of the Admiralty.
His decision was encouraged by the local tribe, Ngāti Whātua, who expected that Pākehā settlement would bring trade, and protection from hostile tribes.
In 1840 they sold the Crown a wedge of the central isthmus and a large block stretching north to Kaipara Harbour.
By the early 1850s the tribe retained only the slopes above the Ōrākei foreshore, and land at Māngere.
Although the capital was shifted to Wellington in 1865, Auckland remained a major gateway to New Zealand, and grew into a prosperous port city.
Auckland's immense low-density suburbs have long been the first choice of residence for overseas migrants, and the city is now the country's largest urban centre.
