Background

The Skinner Fund was established in 1966 in honour of Henry Devenish Skinner and established jointly with the New Zealand Archaeological Association and the Polynesian Society from public subscription, and administered by Royal Society Te Apārangi. Following the death of Dr Skinner in 1978, the fund was substantially increased by donations from the Friends of the Otago Museum and the Otago Museum Trust Board as a token to his memory.

The purpose of the fund is to promote the study of the history, art, culture, physical and social anthropology of the Māori and other Polynesian peoples, particularly through the recording, survey, excavation and scientific study of prehistoric and historic sites in New Zealand and the islands of the South-west Pacific. This includes the detailed analysis of all cultural, artistic, or physical remains which have been recovered as the result of such investigations. To this end both research projects having survey, recording, and excavation as their goal, as well as those which propose to treat analytically and comparatively materials already so recovered shall be deemed to have equal weight. Preference will be given to well-documented research plans which specify methodology and anticipated outcomes of the proposed research.