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Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Did you ever wonder where the concept of locking things up came from? The reality of human nature seems to be that ever since people have owned things that are deemed valuable, they need to be protected from theft. Not … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Here in New Zealand, we like to think ourselves as a nation of outdoor enthusiasts, always off tramping, kayaking, mountain biking, etc. But it wasn’t always thus. Our love affair with the outdoors began in the mid-late 19th century and was … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Today we’re going back to Christchurch’s hinterland, this time to Kura Tāwhiti/Castle Hill, a place that’s still an important and valued part of the city’s surrounds. But in the interests of full disclosure, I feel like I should let you … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

One of the most interesting things about being an archaeologist or a historian is seeing the development of ideas and knowledge throughout the ages. We are reminded, time and time again, that the ideas and theories that we consider primitive … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

He is bed maker to the dead. The pillows which he lays never rumple. The day of interment is the theatre in which he displays the mysteries of this art. Thomas Lamb 1811.   Nothing in this would can be … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Call us appraisalists, historical researchers, or even cyber archaeologists. Most of our day consists of using a wide variety of historical material to pull together the histories of sites around Canterbury (and to make sure those archaeologists in the field … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

It is interesting to consider how we are influenced by an intangible map of our senses and emotions tied to our place in the world. We pay little attention to how we feel walking around a familiar neighbourhood, looking at … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Following on from last week’s blog post, when we discovered a tea set used by a local 19th century caterer – this time we will take a closer look at what catering may have been like for the Victorians. Prior … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

As life-changing experiences go, the earthquake on 22 February 2011 was fairly significant. On the one hand, our house was red-zoned (but still liveable), friends lost their lives and the city lost many of the old buildings that, for me, … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Some of you might have been to the St James Conservation Area, a remote and beautiful area managed by the Department of Conservation. You might have been cycling or walking there, or you might have been drawn by the romance … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

In the beginning there was no Te Wai Pounamu or Aotearoa. The waters of Kiwa rolled over the place now occupied by the South Island, the North Island and Stewart Island. No sign of land existed. Before Raki (the Sky … Continue reading →

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Presenting a selection of children’s ceramic plates and cups excavated in Christchurch for your perusal, with commentary. Jessie Garland References Riley, Noel., 1991. Gifts for Good Children: The History of Children’s China, Part 1, 1790-1890. Richard Dennis, Somerset.

Articles, Christchurch uncovered

Sometimes we come across such a spectacular artefact, that we are inspired to look a little deeper into the historical industry from which it was used. The discovery of a charcoal clothes iron got me thinking about the domestic lives … Continue reading →

Articles, UC QuakeStudies

A copy of a letter from Seamus O'Cromtha which was sent to the Chief Executive of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) on 3 September 2016. The letter was sent on behalf of Empowered Christchurch. In the letter, O'Cromtha calls on the Chief Executive to instruct the Christchurch City Council to stop issuing building consents in areas such as the Avon River floodplain until stop banks have been erected along the river. O'Cromtha comments, "Properties that should be protected by stop banks currently have no protection against flooding".

Research papers, The University of Auckland Library

The majority of current procedures used to deduce liquefaction potential of soils rely on empirical methods. These methods have been proven to work in the past, but these methods are known to overestimate the liquefaction potential in certain regions of Christchurch due to a whole range of factors, and the theoretical basis behind these methods cannot be explained scientifically. Critical state soil mechanics theory was chosen to provide an explanation for the soil's behaviour during the undrained shearing. Soils from two sites in Christchurch were characterised at regular intervals for the critical layers and tested for the critical state lines (CSL). Various models and relationships were then used to predict the CSL and compared with the actual CSL. However none of the methods used managed to predict the CSL accurately, and a separate Christchurch exclusive relationship was proposed. The resultant state parameter values could be obtained from shear-wave velocity plots and were then developed into cyclic resistance ratios (CRR). These were subsequently compared with cyclic stress ratios (CSR) from recent Christchurch earthquakes to obtain the factor of safety. This CSL-based approach was compared with other empirical methods and was shown to yield a favourable relationship with visual observations at the sites' locations following the earthquake.