Kaiapoi was known to the Māori of other parts of New Zealand as the home of a people who had both an abundance of food, and an exceptional wealth of the highly prized greenstone. In the eyes of the Māori, this hard and tenacious nephrite jade or "pounamu" was the nearest equivalent to metal itself, and a tool or weapon made of it was considered a prized possession. Ownership of greenstone was a mania of the Māori, driving them to endure unimaginable hardships to obtain it. The main greenstone source was in the Taramakau and Arahura Rivers on the West Coast, roughly opposite Kaiapoi.