Swamp kauri, sometimes marketed as "ancient kauri", are prehistoric kauri trees, buried and preserved in peat up to 50,000 years ago in New Zealand's North Island. Buried under a peat swamp by an unexplained act of nature at the end of the last Ice Age, the trees have survived the centuries underground, sealed in a chemically balanced environment that has preserved the timber in almost perfect condition.
The trees grew for nearly 2000 years before they were buried. Some have a girth of around 40 feet, and a total height of nearly 200 feet.
Tāne Mahuta, also called "God of the Forest", is a giant kauri tree in the Waipoua Forest of Northland Region, New Zealand. In 2002, at 45.2 m (148 ft) tall and girth of 15.44m (50.7ft), it is the largest living kauri tree known on Earth today. It is estimated to be up to 2,500 years old. It is named for the Māori god of forests and of birds.
Extraction of the logs is time consuming, expensive and technically difficult, requiring skilled operators of heavy machinery working in wet conditions. Each log must be carefully brought to the surface. If the log is salvaged from native forest or wetlands then after the log has been removed, the area is then restored to its original contours.
A trademark of swamp kauri is deep, shimmering streaks of iridescence, called "white bait", found in some of the wilder grain patterns. This particular grain is named after schools of New Zealand whitebait fish that emit a similar pattern when swimming in one direction. This is clearly seen in the pens below.
