Papamoa pā from the south-east

The pattern of the pā is somewhat obscured by the farm roads, particularly the one entering the defensive perimeter on the eastern ridge. The pā is some 250 m long and the total length of the defensive perimeter is about 800 m. The highest defended platform (left) is about 20 m wide and 70 m long. The long, lower platform (centre) with multiple transverse ditches and banks along its length continues through a curve out to the right. There is another pā on the broad ridge in the distance. In 1947 in the Journal of the Polynesian Society, G. Blake-Palmer described this pā complex, the first published aerial photograph of an archaeological site in New Zealand.