"I think it could've meant a lot to someone. My dad had a similar bone necklace and I know when he lost it he was devastated. He felt like a part of him was missing until he found it again."
The pendant, which appeared to have been handmade, could have been passed down to its owner through the generations, or it could have been gifted from a loved one.
"There [are] so many questions that keep racing through my head, like did the person throw it in the lake on purpose, to let go of something, or was it accidentally dropped into the stream flowing into the lake? It must have some kind of story."
Ms Unuwai said while the greenstone didn't look like it was worth much money, it would likely be precious to someone.
Kirsten Unuwai is looking for the owner of this greenstone pendant found in Lake Rotorua. Photo / Stephen Parker
"I don't think it'll be worth anything to anyone except the owner."
In Maori culture pounamu was considered a taonga or treasure, she said. Pounamu increased in mana as it passed from one generation to another.
She hoped she would find the owner, who would have photos or a story to prove it belonged to him or her, so she could return it.
She urged anyone who might know who the pounamu belonged to contact the Rotorua Daily Post.
