Heritage et AL

Awekura is the name given to this blog and podcast series that showcases treasures within Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections, presented by our library specialists.  Awekura is a kupu drawn from Māori weaponry, particularly the taiaha. It refers to the arero, the tongue of the taiaha, which is adorned with kura, red feathers. The term reflects both the physical beauty and their deeper spiritual and narrative significance.  The Heritage Maps collection is an essential resource for researchers, historians, and cartographic enthusiasts. Many of the 10,000 strong map collection items are available to explore on KURA under Heritage Maps . Because their formats vary widely, maps require careful storage; at Auckland Libraries, they are housed in cabinets, tubes, drawers, and specially designed folders. Over her years as Maps Librarian, Katrina helped catalogue the collection and played a key role in establishing the heritage maps presence on our digital platform, KURA .  In ...

For many years it was assumed that this well known series of maps covering the Auckland area was just confined to the Auckland isthmus and the Birkenhead Point to Devonport area of the North Shore. However, Auckland Libraries has now received and made available additional sheets that dramatically extend the reach of this map series to the North, West, East and South. The maps are accessible through a link on the  Auckland Libraries heritage collections website Kura   by entering the terms 'Auckland and environs' into the keyword search box. Ref: NZ Map 7934, Sheet 12, part  of Takapuna Parish, vicinity Lake Pupuke/part Hauraki Gulf, 1930, Sir George Grey Special Collections These maps were compiled in the late 1920s and early 1930s and give a dramatic picture of the development of Auckland’s outer suburbs at that time.   Author:  David Verran, Central Auckland Research Centre