Who discovered kauri gum made a very good varnish?
It was after experimental shipments of kauri gum were sent to London in the 1830’s by Gilbert Mair or James Busby, or both, that its value in the manufacture of varnish was discovered. One report has it that a shipment of 20 tons, pronounced worthless by London experts, was thrown overboard into the Thames (refer page 68 ‘The New Story of the Kauri’, A H Reed; 634.9). The Kauri Museum has the largest collection of kauri gum in the world.
