November 25, 2015
International recognition for He Whakaputanga
The 1835 He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni, also known as the Declaration of Independence of the United Tribes of New Zealand, has been added to UNESCO’s New Zealand documentary heritage register.
The two sheets of medium-weight cream paper signed by 52 Maori rangatira is on permanent display in the secure, climate controlled Constitution Room at Archives New Zealand in Wellington.
Other additions to the archive this year are the Sir Edmund Hillary Archive in the Auckland War Memorial Museum and the Pickerill Papers on Plastic Surgery held at Otago University’s Hocken Library.
Dianne Macaskill, the chair of the Memory of the World New Zealand Trust, says UNESCO recognition draws attention to the significance of documentary heritage and the institutions that are its custodians.
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