A blank piece of parchment (prepared animal skin historically used for writing) believed to have been from Te Tiriti o
Waitangi has been confirmed to be so, with DNA analysis proving it shares the same genetic composition as the lower part
of the iconic Waitangi sheet.
Archives New Zealand, National Library and Te Papa worked together to genetically analyse the parchment, publishing
their findings in the scientific journal PLOS ONE.
The blank piece of parchment was found in 1929 in an envelope labelled “1865, Treaty of Waitangi Blank Portion of the
Original Skin” which was donated to the Alexander Turnbull Library with the papers of WBD Mantell, who was Minister of
Native Affairs for two terms in the 1860s.
The analysis came about as part of ongoing preservation research into the country’s significant constitutional documents
housed at the He Tohu exhibition at the National Library in Wellington.
“We were frustrated at the lack of early information about the condition of the Treaty documents and were unable to
fully evaluate the document to ensure its safe and ongoing preservation requirements” says Peter Whitehead, National
Library Collection Care Leader.
Archives New Zealand Conservator Anna Whitehead says, “We had thoroughly examined the blank piece of parchment but
weren’t able to guarantee its origin unless on our own – hence asking Lara Shepherd, an evolutionary biologist at Te
Papa to help with DNA testing.”
Apart from confirming its connection to the Treaty, the research discovered that the parchment had been made from a
female sheep.
The conservators can now use the blank piece like a control to see how events of the past 150 years have impacted on the
preservation of the document. This opens the door for more research opportunities.