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Our Theory on How Ancient Kauri Became Buried

There are many different theories on how the trees came to rest - from tsunamis, volcanic shock wave, meteor, hurricanes etc. However all these events would suggest that the trees will be lying in the ground facing the same direction.

Generations of buried Ancient Kauri logs

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In our experience there are three layers of logs lying on top of each other.
In our experience there are three layers of logs lying on top of each other. They are in a criss-cross pattern suggesting the trees fell over randomly. Some trees also died standing up and have decayed to ground level leaving only the root structure. In fact we have found trees that grew over top of fallen horizontal logs in the ground.

Each layer is a different generation. However in each layer the trees are mature, aged from 600 years and older (Kauri trees take 200 – 300 years to mature and can live to be 2,000 years and older). They have all been buried for more than 45,000 years but the age difference between the top layer of trees and bottom layer is only about 2,000 years.

Nearby northern New Zealand ancient wetlands

We believe the trees fell over naturally as the water level around them rose. The buried forest we excavate is just inland from the coast. Over tens of thousands of years the sand blown inland and gathered in hollows would have built up layers to form a sandstone base that would have prevented water draining through it. These hollows would then turn into ponds and lakes.

Size and roots led to repeated process

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As the Kauri forest regenerated they would reach a size until they too became unstable and fell over...
Due to the huge size and shallow root structure of Kauri, the forest around the lakes would become unstable. It would not take much to make these giants fall over into the wetland, hence the criss-cross pattern as they fell at different angles all around the edge of the lakes. As the Kauri forest regenerated they would reach a size until they too became unstable and fell over. This process repeated itself over the millennia. The Kauri forests subsequent to these earlier buried trees would have died naturally and their decay has formed the peat that covers the buried trees that we extract from peat swamps today.

Ancient Kauri logs found just beneath the surface in northern New Zealand

The logs are buried just beneath the surface of the ground. Only the lower trunk section and ball root structure is predominantly found. The trunk tends to taper to a “V” shape as the portion of the log lying above ground has decayed to ground level. Some logs are on a 20 degree angle into the ground suggesting they have fallen over with force, probably under a larger tree that has fallen on to it. For this reason we also occasionally find complete round logs lying deeper in the ground.

Sometimes you hear the name 'Swamp Kauri'

Different names are used for the very old Kauri recovered from the swamps of New Zealand. The oldest, more than 45,000 years old, is most accurately called Ancient Kauri, whereas swamp kauri can be as young as 1800 to 3000 years old. Our company only uses the Ancient Kauri that we extract ourselves in our products.

The label Ancient Kauri has become the industry icon

The success of our company and our branding has seen the Kauri industry adopt the term Ancient Kauri as the preferred name. However, we are the only company that authenticate all our Ancient Kauri to be more than 45,000 years old.