The Statue of Mary (Our Lady of Lourdes), September 8th, 1901 was placed on the hillside at Pukekaraka Catholic Maori Mission Station at Otaki, New Zealand.  In the local language of the Maori People she was called "Hine Nui O Te Ao Katoa" - "Mary Great Mother of the Whole World."  She is wearing a Maori  Chieftainess Cloak of Honour.

On a hill in the small New Zealand town of Otaki sits the Shrine of Mary, known as Pukekaraka "the hill where the Karaka trees grow;" the Karaka tree is sacred to the Maori. Otaki, established in 1844, is one of the first mission stations of the Fathers and Brothers of the Society of Mary (Marists).  The missionaries came to New Zealand in 1838, from France, and they brought the Catholic faith to the Polynesian people, called the Maori. The first church was dedicated to Mary, Our Lady of Victories. A grotto was built in 1904.  It was then enlarged and moved to a different hill in 1905. The Grotto, named "The Grotto of Lourdes" is a reflection of the French Marists devotion to Mary.

The Wall of Reconciliation and Peace was built in 1910, and stands in front of the Grotto  It was built to signify reconciliation between the local Maori, and the end of the war between the Mua-Upoko and Raukawa tribes.  Because this was a sacred place, no weapons were to be taken inside in the Grotto. In 1999, a cairn of stones was placed in front of the Wall of Reconciliation and Peace to signify the desire for the unity of all Christians. Representatives from other churches and congregations brought stones from their localities and placed them in this stack. This was done to unite the Maori people not only to their immediate neighbors but to their European neighbors as well.