Pu`uhonua O Honaunau National Historical Park

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Intro

Pu`uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park preserves the site where, up until the early 19th centruy, Hawaiians who broke a kapu or one of the ancient laws against the gods could avoid certain death by fleeing to this place of refuge or "pu`uhonua". The offender would absolved by a priest and freed to leave. Defeated warriors and non-combantants could also find refuge here during times of battle. The grounds just outside the Great Wall that encloses the pu`uhonua were home to several generations of powerful cheifs.

The 182 acre park, established in 1961, includes the pu`uhonua and a complex of archeological sites inculding: temple platforms, royal fishponds, sledding tracks, and some coastal village sites. The Haloe o Keawe temple and several thatched strucures have been reconstructed.

Designations

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