Some time prior to 1904, an iron helmet was dredged from the Wellington Harbour. The helmet is now housed at the Te Papa Museum in Wellington. Facts surrounding the helmet vary depending on the source. A summary of referenced facts and claims follows.

Current Official Story

Te Papa Museum

Retrieved from Te Papa Museum website on 21st September 2010

• Helmet dated to 1580
• Found in Wellington Harbour prior to 1904 – actual date unknown
• Cited as evidence for pre-Tasman European contact
• It is a Close Helmet
• Possibly made in England or Northern Italy
• Not necessarily Spanish
• State of preservation suggests in water for short time
• No signs of marine encrustation, but could have been cleaned
• So little known that cannot be used as evidence or pre-Tasman contact
• May have been ships ballast
• May have been a souvenir, gift or trade item
• First recorded in museum collection in 1904 – 1905
• Close helmets used in 16th century
• No evidence to suggest it is actually Spanish
• Not known when or how the museum acquired it
• Recorded as ‘found in Wellington Harbour’

Te Ara – Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Retrieved from Te Ara website on 21st September 2010

In an audio file on the Te Ara website, historian Phyllis Herda discusses the Spanish Helmet. The audio recording is accompanied by the following statements:

• Helmet allegedly fished out of harbour
• No record before 1904
• Theory that it was dropped from Spanish vessel not convincing
• Herda discusses theorised Juan Fernandez visit (negative view)

Other Opinions

In 1983, Dr. Robin J Watt, the director of the Museum of New Zealand, wrote an article about the helmet. That article was published in the National Museum of New Zealand records on 19 August 1983.
(The Myth of New Zealand’s so called ‘Spanish Helmet’, Robin J Watt, National Museum of New Zealand Records, Wellington, 1983)

In his article, Robin Watt quotes but ignores the advise of scientist S. Soylemezoglu from the DSIR:

…it is feasible that the helmet could have lain in the harbour… in still, stagnant  water or covered in mud….. for an unknown period of time……The type of pitting, wide flat, large and uneven, is typical of oxygen attack under seawater.
- Retrieved from the Stradbroke Island Galleon website on 21st September 2010

NOTE: I have no association with the Stradbroke theory and cannot support nor negate it. I would be very happy if someone could supply me with a copy of the original Robin Watt article for serious review.

UPDATE: A big thanks to Dr. Robin Watt, who has provided the article to me personally. Your help and information is much appreciated.