Kauri gum, a resin from the kauri tree, was once a major source of income for New Zealand. Fossilized kauri gum was collected and graded for quality, used for cooking, lighting, and pigment. Today, it is mostly used for ornaments and jewelry.
Kauri gum is the resin of the kauri tree, also known as Agathis australis. This product was once widely produced in New Zealand and was a major source of income for this nation in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Today, kauri gum is mostly a novelty and particularly fine examples can be very expensive .
Like other resinous trees, the kauri tree produces a thick wound-healing sap in the bark. When a tree is injured, sap oozes out to cover the wound. As the tree develops, the sap crust is eventually pushed off the growing bark. Kauri trees once covered much of New Zealand, and as a result, the ground around many Kauri forests became covered in rubber deposits. Eventually, these deposits fossilized, just like amber in many other regions of the world.
Fossilized kauri gum was collected throughout New Zealand and graded according to quality, with hard, pale gums particularly valuable, while softer, darker gums were less valuable. Fossil rubber could be used in the production of paints and decorative ornaments. The Maori people of New Zealand used fresh and fossilized rubber for cooking and lighting, as it burns easily, and also used it in the production of pigment for traditional ta moko tattoos. Kauri gum was also used to make chewing gum.
The search for fossilized kauri gum has required excavating areas that were once home to kauri trees. Settlers in New Zealand, as well as the native Maori, were involved in the kauri gum industry, exporting copious amounts of the fossil material to England in the 1800s. Today, this product can be difficult to obtain. Several museums maintain shops of kauri gum, including ornaments and other products made with it, and private collectors also have individual pieces. Costs for collectibles vary depending on the item, size, and quality of rubber used in its production, but some items can be extremely expensive.
Today, the market for fossil tree resins focuses primarily on the production of ornaments and jewelry, as synthetic materials have arisen to replace products such as kauri and amber in paints and varnishes. Visitors to New Zealand can see interesting examples of traditional art made with this product in museums and can also find some items for sale from companies that specialize in collecting and selling kauri artifacts. As with other collectibles, it’s wise to get an expert’s opinion on the authenticity of an item before purchasing, especially if it’s expensive.
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