An artillery shell from the 1860s was detonated in a Wellington park this afternoon after it was discovered buried beneath a suburban home two days ago.
Wellington police acting tactical response manager Senior Sergeant Hamish Milne said the shell was found by builders who were strengthening the foundations of a house in Berhampore.
The Defence Force bomb disposal unit was then called in to take care of it.
"They identified it as six-pound artillery shrapnel shell which was commonly in use around 1860...and they made the decision that the best course of action was to move it to a nearby safe location and destroy it there,'' Mr Milne said.
As a precaution, the police specialist search group would search under the house where the shell was found to check if there are any others.