KEY POINTS:
'I declare that I have had a full life with much happiness and a share of sadness. I have little cause for complaint. If, however, some people in New Zealand feel I have made some contribution to the prestige of my country then they could best demonstrate this
by continuing modest support to the Himalayan people I have worked with for so many years."
With those words, Sir Edmund Hillary signed his last will and testament, in which he asked for his ashes be spread over the Hauraki Gulf.
In a gesture typical of the unassuming benevolence he displayed throughout his life, Sir Ed left the personal papers, diaries, maps, colour slides, photographs and other material relating to his "life and adventures" to the nation, through the Auckland War Memorial Museum.
The bequest was on the proviso his children, Sarah and Peter, had access should they wish to publish anything.
The camera, ice axe, spanner, enamel mug and silk gloves he took to the summit of Everest, and the largest pieces of rock he brought back down, were left to his wife.
She has already donated them to the museum.
Lady June Hillary was the largest benefactor of her husband's estate, receiving $1.2 million and having substantial debts wiped relating to loans from her husband to buy other properties.
Sir Ed also left her the keys to his Honda car.
He asked the home in Remuera Rd, Auckland, he built be sold so his estate could be settled, and gave Lady June three years to move into a smaller house nearby, which was bought before his death.
The knight left his children equal shares in his property at Anawhata on Auckland's west coast, a place Sir Ed described as "the most beautiful place on the planet".
It can be sold only if both agree.
They also received $300,000 each and the Tibetan, Sherpa and Nepalese relics and carpets, which were acquired by Sir Ed and his first wife Louise, who died in a plane crash with 16-year-old daughter Belinda in 1975.
Ten other members of Sir Ed and Lady June's families received sums of $100,000 or $200,000.
The day after Sir Ed's death on January 11, family friend Mark Sainsbury told the Herald on Sunday money was never important to Sir Ed or Lady June.
Despite earning significant sums from speaking tours, book royalties and camping equipment bearing his name, the 88-year-old lived on the pension in the Remuera Rd home he built 50 years ago with Louise.
Sainsbury said the house was "pretty basic" and Sir Ed didn't drive a "flash" car.
"He could have made a fortune for himself. I don't think he was struggling but at the same token you never got the impression he was rolling in dough."
Sir Ed established the Himalayan Trust in 1960 to battle poverty in the mountain villages of Nepal.
The trust has built three hospitals, 13 health clinics, more than 30 schools, and bridges and roads.
