Julius von Haast

Julius von Haast was a German geologist who explored Waitaha Canterbury extensively in the 1860s before becoming the founding Director and Curator of the Canterbury Museum in 1870. Haast was originally sent to New Zealand to assess its suitability for German immigrants. He explored the Auckland area and Waikato, Lake Taupō, the Bay of Plenty and Coromandel with an emphasis on their geography and geology.

In Te Waipounamu, he focused on Nelson, Golden Bay, and Picton before moving down the West Coast identifying valuable minerals in the ranges between Nelson and the Grey River and completing a topographical map of 'Westland'. 

When he finally reached Canterbury, his geological expertise made the rail tunnel from Lyttelton to Christchurch possible and he was rewarded with the position of Provincial Geologist to Canterbury from 1861-1868. During this time, he continued his geological investigations of the West Coast and Canterbury. He discovered coal and gold, identified the origins of the Mackenzie Plains, collected numerous biological specimens, and 'discovered' and re-named several central South Island glaciers. 

He put his samples and specimens to good use as foundation holdings of the Canterbury Museum. When Canterbury College was established, he lectured in geology from 1873, becoming a full professor in 1876. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1867, received a hereditary knighthood from the Austrian Emperor in 1875, and the Royal Geographical Society’s Patron’s Gold Medal in 1884 for his explorations of New Zealand.

Report on the Rakaia

In the summer of 1865-6 Haast embarked on an expedition to survey the various headwaters of the Rakaia and its tributaries in order to produce a topological and geological record of the area. The comprehensive report of his explorations produced for the Canterbury Provincial Government was published later in 1866 as the Report on the headwaters of the river Rakaia: with twenty illustrations, and two appendices. 

During his journey, Haast created field sketches of the landscapes he encountered. He subsequently developed eleven of these sketches into watercolours which were reproduced as lithographs in the Report. This gallery features a selection of Haast's artworks depicting the Rakaia region.  

Rakaia and Noti Raureka

The Rakaia provided a pathway to one of the traditional passes through Kā Tiritiri-o-te-moana - Noti Raureka. A map illustrating this route was drawn by a Ngāi Tahu kaumātua for Revd James West Stack in 1865, around the same time as Haast's map of the Rakaia and Hakatere catchments was produced. Stack sent the map to the Canterbury Provincial Government on 31 March 1865, and it was immediately dispatched to surveying parties in the field. Surveyors Browning and Griffiths successfully traced the route described on the map, and Browning’s name was given to the pass. Haast relied on these survey maps during his expedition through the Rakaia and Hakatere catchments. 

The Noti Raureka map shows a large mountain and lake at the top of the pass, and a cave where Ngāi Tahu parties camped overnight. Although Arthurs Pass became the principal travel route between Canterbury and Te Tai Poutini, a track was also formed over Noti Raureka that was extensively used. The location of the original map is unknown, but it was photographed by the ethnographer William Taylor around 1942.