mmm.. melty.

These two pages from the Kauri Timber Company’s 1906 catalogue show the kinds of exterior and interior wooden decoration favoured at the time. Other pages in the catalogue show eaves, brackets, fretwork, all types of doors, sashes, mouldings, sash and door frames, shop windows, shutters, bay windows, greenhouse lights, and mantelpieces. You can see more pages here. Many researchers consult these catalogues to get an idea of how to restore their old villas.

The Kauri Timber Company was an amalgamation formed in 1888 by a group of prominent Melbourne businessmen and worked with timber suppliers in the Auckland Region. This amalgamation saved many of the local timber business which were experiencing hard times in the depression of the 1880s. You can see an article relating to its formation here.  However there had been previous smaller companies of a similar name before that date - such as the Hokianga Kauri Timber Company in the 1870s.

Kauri timber had been discovered during the expedition of French explorer Marion du Fresne in 1772 and the tall thin specimens found near the coast were found to be an excellent wood for ships’ spars. Later, larger specimens were felled and were enormously valued for their “massive volumes of attractive clean grained timber” (See some history here)

The Kauri Timber Company Ltd (Auckland Office) :[Catalogue. ca 1906].