Tamil bell

It was reportedly being used as a pot to boil potatoes by Māori women near Whangārei in the Northland Region of New Zealand.

Its presence in New Zealand, at a time when there was no trade between Māori and any part of Asia, means it can be considered an out-of-place artifact.

He recognized the object as part of a ship's bell, and traded a cast iron pot for it.

It remains today in Te Papa's collection, though it has been loaned out for research and was displayed in the Indian Heritage Centre in Singapore.

[3] Colenso wrote of the bell in 1865, "It is believed that this ancient relic may yet prove to be an important witness... Its tale has yet to be told.

"[3] The most recent significant research on the bell was by Nalina Gopal, a museum curator from Singapore's Indian Heritage Centre.

[2] It is known that Tamil traders sailed as far as the southern tip of Madagascar and to what is today Indonesia, but there is no record of them reaching New Zealand.