GWYNETH HYNDMAN A waka found buried in the sand at Omaui has attracted the interest of a wet wood conservation expert Efforts to conserve a waterlogged waka found buried in the sand at Omaui in December have attracted input from a wet wood conservation expert. University of Auckland senior research fellow in conservation Dilys Johns travelled to Invercargill this week to spend time at the Southland Museum and Art Gallery and assess the 3.5 metre incomplete waka. The artefact has been soaking in a custom-built water tank since it was found half-buried on the coast by Invercargill historian and city councillor Lloyd Esler last month. The tank, filled with a mix of freshwater and saltwater to keep the wood from cracking, would be temporary, Ms Johns said, until a more appropriate tank could be built to house the waka. She estimated it would take about three years for the waka to be chemically treated and another year for the wood to dry out enough for the waka to be put on display in the museum. It was a crucial process that many people were unaware of, she said. “Artefacts like these are very fragile.” Ms Johns had assessed 11 wakas in the past 20 years – taken from both freshwater and saltwater sources – and each process was different, depending on the species of wood, how degraded it was, and how long it had been dried. The purpose of the first visit to Southland this week was to liaise with iwi and the museum and to take a sample of the wood to determine what it was and an approximate date the waka was built. Ngai Tahu kaumatua Michael Skerrett was also at the museum yesterday to meet Ms Johns and provide input. He agreed with her that the museum was the best place to store the waka, thought to be one of the larger wooden artefacts found in Southland. “Nothing lasts forever,” he said. “But with the right temperature and environment we can make this last a little bit longer.” Ms Johns said though the wood sample would be taken to Auckland for assessment and carbon dating, she had no intention of removing the waka from Southland. “I believe that something like this should stay in the community. It is important for the local community to have access to their heritage – seeing this also gives everyone a greater appreciation of the process of conservation.”   Go to southlandtimes.co.nz to view Ms Johns speak about the treatment process. – © Fairfax NZ News