A highly fragrant comestible: the cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes) in pre-European Māori New Zealand

Abstract

A count of 6235 Chondrichthyes vertebrae was recovered from the 17th to 18th century AD NRD site (R11/859) on the Manukau Harbour, Auckland, New Zealand. These have been identified by aDNA analysis as mostly rig (Mustelus lenticulatus). To provide context for this unusual assemblage we briefly review the archaeological record of Chondrichthyes fishing in Oceania and New Zealand, and more extensively review the 19th and early 20th century ethnography of Māori shark fishing in New Zealand along with the archaeological record. Chondrichthyes were of economic, social and spiritual importance to pre-European Māori. A variety of species were caught by a variety of techniques, including mass harvest, and could be dried for storage. Our initial reading of the ethnographic record led us to expect that the assemblage would be dominated by school shark (Galeorhinus galeus), but a closer analysis of the record showed that Māori sharking practice was diverse. The NRD assemblage encapsulates this variation.