46 LEAHY 
@ Posthole 
9 Stakehole 
sri ~ Drain 
435), Burnt patch 
hss 
Fig. 5. Plan of Davidson’s excavation on an upper “semi detached” terrace. 
At the time little was known archaeologically about the construction of 
prehistoric Maori dwellings and this terrace evidence was regarded as too flimsy to 
have represented a living structure but, with hindsight, it seems probable that the two 
insubstantial terrace structures were both houses. 
All three terraces indicated a one phase occupation. 
Conclusions 
The Poor Hill site, consisting of a ridge pa and associated external terracing lies 
within the historical Old Land Claim 4 of the Reverend Richard Davis. The site is 
most likely the traditional Ngaungau pa. 
The pa was ploughed over, the ditches and banks destroyed and fences, holding 
yards and a water tank placed on the site soon after it was surveyed and excavated in 
1967. The amphitheatre terraces were also modified but most are still clearly visible on 
the landscape. 
At the time of the survey the site was considered unusual because of the number 
of well preserved large terraces cut into the slopes below the pa itself. 
The amphitheatre terraces, which are statistically different in size from the 
terraces immediately below the pa, appear to be later additions because of their state 
of preservation. It is not clear whether the pa was still in use at the time. 
The excavation by Gorbey on the lowest and largest amphitheatre terrace 
provided posthole evidence for a large building. However, insufficient knowledge of 
