Spotlight falls on Pompallier's 'Rat Pack'
New Zealand Historic Places Trust information release
1 August 2003
Most visitors go to the lovely Bay of Islands to get away from the rat
race.
But for Biological Anthropologist, Lisa Matisoo-Smith, the opportunity
to pick over the mortal remains of some long-departed and mummified vermin
recently was an irresistible draw-card.
The object of Lisa's interest reside at Pompallier - the Historic Places
Trust property in Russell, and restored printery of the French Catholic
mission headquarters established by Bishop Jean-Baptiste Pompallier in
1838.
Besides being a nationally significant heritage building - New Zealand's
oldest-standing factory in fact - Pompallier also boasts an unrivalled
collection of expired rodents. Rats in the riotous port of 1840s Kororareka
found what must have been their promised land - the mission's stinking
tannery - and promptly colonised it.
Despite the fact that some of these calcified cadavers have not drawn
breath for over 150 years, their usefulness may yet extend beyond their
expiry date - and it's largely thanks to the nature of Pompallier itself
(the building, not the Bishop).
"Pompallier is built of rammed earth - a traditional construction
technique from Lyons employed by the French Marist missionaries. The thick
earth walls have proven to be an ideal resting place for the rats, and
the result has been some very well preserved specimens," says Lisa
who began carrying out DNA tests on the ratty remains earlier this month.
"The rats' remains were found during the restoration work of the
building that was carried out in the early 1990s, and we suspect they
may have come here with successive waves of immigrants and settlers. By
examining the DNA of the rats that died over a period of decades we may
be able to learn more about rat and human migration."
According to Lisa, who is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Auckland,
one of the important questions she wants to answer is whether Pompallier's
portfolio of ratty reliquaries include the New Zealand Kiore, or whether
they hail from more exotic locations - England for example, the south
of France or even the United States.
Rats already tell us a lot about migration patterns. According to Lisa,
the New Zealand Kiore's cousins can be found in the Cook Islands and Tahiti,
providing clear evidence to support theories about the migration of Maori
from this part of the Pacific, with some of the more adventurous Kiore
possibly hitching a ride with Kupe.
Kiore are now extinct on the North Island mainland, though their descendants
can still be found on outlying islands.
One of the challenges will be to unlock the secrets held within the DNA
of Pompallier's very own Rat Pack - answers keenly sought by Lisa and
Pompallier's Property Manager, Kate Martin.
"I've always said that rats and curators have a lot in common. These
rats collected anything and everything, lining their nests with collectables
from every generation that this venerable building has seen: from mission
papers to Mrs Greenway's dishcloth," says Kate.
"That's enabled us to estimate when they were alive. What we don't
know is where they originally came from - and that's what we want to find
out."
Information from DNA analysis will hopefully unlock a range of delectable
data that will help complete the picture of the rattus' migration story,
and provide additional information on their human companions.
There's also scope for a bit of fun according to Lisa.
"We know there is potential for an education programme for schools
and a children's book."
"We're very curious about the origins of Pompallier's rats and the
information that they might be able to give us," she says.
The results of the DNA tests are expected in a few weeks.
Guided tours of Pompallier take place every day throughout Conservation
Week (August 4-10.)
For further information:
Kate Martin
Property Manager, Pompallier
Tel: 09 403-9015
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