Archaeological Remains of Pa

What is a pa?

Pa at One Tree Hill/Maungakiekie. Picture: Kevin Jones, DoC

A pa is a fortified place built by Maori. Pa are associated with a group of related people and vary in size from those built for whanau (a large family) to hapu or iwi (tribe) of several hundred people. In the past, they were built as refuge from attack during times of war, but also had many other uses. They were secure places to live and store food, they were residences for important people and centres for learning, crafts and horticulture. Pa were not lived in all the time; according to the season, people may have been away fishing or collecting birds, or looking after gardens. People may have lived in open settlements most of the time, only going to the pa in times of trouble.

Where are pa found?

Pa at Otautu, South Taranaki. Picture: Kevin Jones, DoC

The archaeological remains of pa can be very obvious in the landscape. They are often located on naturally defensible high points, such as the end of a steep-sided ridge, a coastal headland or an isolated hill. Pa were also built at the edge of swamps and sometimes on flat land. In many cases pa can be recognised from a distance by their profile on the skyline, such as a flat platform, the 'v' shaped notch of a defensive ditch or a series of steps (terraces) cut into the hillside to make level areas.

What is inside a pa?

Motupoi Pah with Tongariro, 1844 George F Angas. Picture: Alexander Turnbull Library A-196-022*

There is no set plan for the inside of pa, the layout depends on the nature of each site and its purpose. Archaeological remains of places that were commonly found inside may still be seen. The tihi (platform) is a large flat area at the top, often associated with important people.
Terraces are artificially levelled areas that provided flat areas for activities and buildings. Rectangular or circular depressions are often the remains of pits for storing kumara. Archaeological excavation has shown that these pits were originally up to a metre deep and were covered by a pitched roof.

When were pa built?

From the Pah Pipitea, Port Nicholson, 1840 William Mein Smith. Picture: Alexander Turnbull Library C-011-005*

The earliest date for defended sites, obtained by archaeologists using radiocarbon dating techniques, is the 16th century. Many pa continued to be built and lived in until the early 19th century . Pa were seen and described by Captain James Cook in 1770 and by European missionaries and travellers in the early 1800s. After the arrival of the musket, traditional styles of pa construction were modified to suit fighting with guns and artillery. In some places, pa remain in use today.

How were pa defended?

Earthworks at Rangiriri Pa 1863 Charles Heaphy. Picture: Alexander Turnbull Library A-145-005*

Maori defended pa in three main ways. They could steepen natural slopes around the pa by scarping (removing earth). They could dig a deep ditch and use the earth to make an internal bank. Features constructed with soil are known as "earthworks". They could build timber palisades (high fences). In the Bay of Islands and Taranaki stone was sometimes also used to strengthen banks and make walls, but this was uncommon elsewhere.

Present day Rangiriri Pa, Waikato. Picture: NZHPT

Fortifications were built to suit the needs of the defenders. If there was an easy approach along a ridge line, the way could be blocked with earthworks such as ditches and banks. Pa built for gun fighting had loop holes in the base of palisades to enable gun fire and angled earthworks for flanking fire. The entrance to a pa can be difficult to find. It is usually an easily defended narrow gap in the earthworks, sometimes between the end of defences and the edge of a steep escarpment.

Further reading

Davidson, J. 1987. The Prehistory of New Zealand. 2nd Edition. Longman Paul, Auckland.
Sutton, D, Furey, L and Marshall, Y. 2003. The Archaeology of Pouerua. Auckland University Press, Auckland.

* Photo: Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand / Te Puna Matauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image

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