On the small island of Motutapu, a complex of bunkers, tunnels, and observation posts stands abandoned, left over from the 1940s and preparations for an invasion that never came. In the language of New Zealand’s indigenous Maori people, Motutapu means “sacred island of Taikehu” (a reference to a Maori ancestor). Located adjacent to the volcanic Rangitoto Island, it was a home and important site for centuries, and the Department of Conservation and the Motutapu Restoration Trust oversee a network of archaeological sites that date back to before an eruption that blanketed the island in ash…
