Last updated November 2026
Drawings of a birdman and fish, made on the face of a limestone overhang, survive at Te Manunui Rock Art Site beside Frenchmans Gully Road in Maungati, inland from Timaru in Waimate District.
Heritage New Zealand lists the shelter as a Category 1 historic place, and records that Ngāi Tahu describe its art as a particular taonga of the area. It is one of several hundred Māori rock art sites in South Canterbury.
Heritage New Zealand lists the site as able to visit from Frenchmans Gully Road, and Waimate District Council’s tourism site gives its hours as daylight only. The way in is signposted from the road.
Visiting Te Manunui Rock Art Site: The Essentials
- Location
- 215 to 275 Frenchmans Gully Road, Maungati (Waimate District)
- Access
- Listed by Heritage New Zealand as able to visit; publicly accessible from Frenchmans Gully Road
- Opening hours
- Daylight hours only, according to Waimate District Council’s tourism site
- Finding it
- Signposted from the road; Waimate District Council’s tourism site mentions a small roadside sign by a stile
- Underfoot
- General guidance from Waimate District Council’s tourism site: the way in can be slippery and slightly downhill, so wear appropriate shoes
- Heritage status
- Heritage New Zealand Category 1 historic place, List No. 7826
- Status
- Check Heritage New Zealand’s list entry and Waimate District’s Māori rock art page before you go.
What to Expect
The art sits on the face of a limestone shelter near Frenchmans Gully Road. Te Ara, the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, describes the drawings there as a birdman and a fish, and Waimate District Council’s tourism site refers to the birdmen and fish drawings at Te Manunui.
Heritage New Zealand records that the art was applied to the walls and reachable roof of the limestone outcrop, where little rain reaches it.
The drawings were made with pigments such as soot and red iron oxide, which could be mixed with fat, including bird fat, to make a paint.
Heritage New Zealand’s list entry notes a soot mixture on the rock and early accounts of red iron oxide bound with fat, and Waimate District Council’s tourism site describes the same kinds of pigment and binder across the district’s rock art.
Heritage New Zealand records the iwi connected with the site as Ngāi Tahu. The Ngāi Tahu Māori Rock Art Trust, which is linked with Te Ana Māori Rock Art Centre in Timaru, exists to support local rūnanga in caring for more than 700 rock art sites across Te Waipounamu, the South Island, and it describes the art as a lasting record of the legacy its ancestors left.
Heritage New Zealand names the trust among those who have worked to protect Te Manunui, along with landowners, community members, tangata whenua, the Department of Conservation and the district councils.
Like the great majority of Māori rock art sites in New Zealand, Te Manunui lies on private land: Heritage New Zealand describes it as part of a farm property. Te Ara notes that about nine in ten recorded rock art sites are in the South Island, and that South Canterbury alone has several hundred.
Visiting the Site
Heritage New Zealand describes the site as publicly accessible from Frenchmans Gully Road, and Waimate District Council’s tourism site asks people to explore it respectfully.
As general guidance, that page gives daylight hours only, mentions a small roadside sign beside a stile, and warns that the way in can be slippery and slightly downhill. The shelter is on a farm property, and Ngāi Tahu describe its art as a particular taonga of the area.
Official Sources for Te Manunui Rock Art Site
Heritage New Zealand: Te Manunui Rock Art Site: the full list entry, with the site’s history, recording and significance to Ngāi Tahu.
Waimate District: Māori Rock Art: the council-run tourism page with access notes for Te Manunui and other rock art in the district.
Te Ana: Ngāi Tahu Māori Rock Art Trust: how the trust supports local rūnanga to care for South Island rock art.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Te Manunui Rock Art Site?
At 215 to 275 Frenchmans Gully Road, Maungati, in Waimate District, inland from Timaru.
Can you visit Te Manunui?
Yes. Heritage New Zealand lists it as able to visit from Frenchmans Gully Road, and Waimate District Council’s tourism site gives its hours as daylight only.
What can you see there?
Drawings of a birdman and fish on a limestone shelter.
Which iwi is connected with the site?
Ngāi Tahu. Heritage New Zealand records that Ngāi Tahu describe the art as a particular taonga of the area.
Is Te Manunui a listed heritage place?
Yes. It is a Heritage New Zealand Category 1 historic place, List No. 7826.
How was the rock art made?
With pigments such as soot and red iron oxide, which could be mixed with fat, including bird fat, to make a paint.
Who looks after Māori rock art in the region?
The Ngāi Tahu Māori Rock Art Trust supports local rūnanga in caring for rock art sites. At Te Manunui, landowners, the community, tangata whenua, the Department of Conservation and the councils have also helped protect the site.
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