Unlocking key to Pink and White Terraces

Rotorua author Rex Bunn presenting some of the findings laid out in his new book. Photo / Ben Fraser

A new book written by Rotorua author Rex Bunn may contain the much-anticipated answer to a 130-year-old question - where are the Pink and White Terraces?

Mr Bunn's e-book, Quest for the Pink and White Terraces, was made available on Amazon yesterday. It centres around long-lost information gathered by German-Austrian geologist Christian Gottlieb Ferdinand Ritter von Hochstetter in 1859.

The 670-page book contains 273 illustrations, photos, charts and maps, some of which have never been published before.

Among the information is believed to be the only survey of Lake Rotomahana and the surrounding land, done by Dr Hochstetter, before the Tarawera eruption.

Mr Bunn said he hoped his book could bring some closure to the horrible events that happened on June 10, 1886.

"The Pink and White Terraces have been a complete mystery because there had never been any government survey of the area so when they were blown away by the Tarawera eruption, nobody knew where to look for them.

"For the last 130 years we have just been guessing their location. Now, thanks to Dr Hochstetter, we have the first empirical evidence and we can say with some certainty that the terraces were not blown away and destroyed but buried several metres under volcanic ash, on land."

Mr Bunn believed many would find the evidence compelling and if the e-book was well received, he would release a soft cover edition. After contributing to such significant research and discovery, Mr Bunn said he felt proud and privileged to be a New Zealander.