Auction house Dunbar Sloane has withdrawn from auction a piece of flagpole, allegedly chopped down by Hone Heke.
Ngapuhi chief Hone Heke chopped down four kauri flagpoles in the 1840s in protest at the way Maori were being treated by the British.
Dunbar Sloane had planned to sell a piece of what has been described as one of the flagpoles at auction next month.
Dunbar Sloane manager Dunbar Sloane Jr said the company had decided to withdraw the auction after complaints from Ngapuhi activist David Rankin.
"We have just had enough of David Rankin's claims that Hone Heke is a sacred name and we are not allowed to use it in our catalogues," he told Radio New Zealand.
Mr Rankin complained to the Human Rights Commission because he said the auction house had not asked the tribe for permission.
There were doubts over the authenticity of the piece, he said.
Mr Rankin said he was "overjoyed" the auction was not going ahead.
"The withdrawal was all about the authenticity of the piece."
AUT University history professor Paul Moon has said the piece of wood was "almost certainly a fake".
