His mammoth 8hr 11min effort has put the Black Caps in a strong position to push for their first test win in more than a year.
There were no slogs to cow. No rushes of blood. No wild swipes outside off. Just patient, sensible cricket. The kind you expect from the country's best batsman.
There were still plenty of trademark flourishes, particularly on day one when he joined Brendon McCullum in plundering the West Indies attack.
There was also a short burst of aggression when he smote Shannon Gabriel for 18 runs in a over.
But the Taylor who came out to bat yesterday had more than a hint of steely determination. Initially, he was forced to survive rather than flourish and fought through a tough patch.
He resumed on 103 and almost steered a catch to gully when he was on 118. On 131 he was dropped when he got an edge into his pads but Kieran Powell could not grasp the chance.
But through it all that he kept his concentration and made steady progress towards the milestone. He combined in healthy partnerships with BJ Watling, Ish Sodhi and Neil Wagner, and a record 195-run stand for the fourth-wicket with McCullum to guide New Zealand through to its fourth highest team total of 609 for nine declared and highest total when inserted.
Taylor's contribution accounted for more than a third and he is only the 13th New Zealander to have scored 200 or more in a test. His innings of 217 is the 12th highest individual score for New Zealand, but that matters not a jot. What matters is Taylor has matured into a quality test batsman and the opposition knows it.
West Indies spearhead Tino Best gave his all to take Taylor's wicket. He threw the ball into the turf late on day one in a moment of complete frustration when he was unable to haul in the catch McCullum had popped up. But all that aggression melted away when he described Taylor's innings.
''My plan basically to bowl at Ross on the first day came through great, but only that the ball ballooned over slip,'' Best said.
''I know a lot of people are going to forget about that but as a bowler I remember that. He could have gone for nought there, you know what I mean. Today - the fellow is a class act, to be honest. He is a very humble person. I've always admired him for a long time and I'm happy for him.
''He just showed the temperament of an international batsman in his prime.''
New Zealand cricket: Highest test scores
• 299 Martin Crowe (1991) v Sri Lanka, Wellington
• 274* Stephen Fleming (2003) v Sri Lanka, Colombo
• 267* Bryan Young (1997) v Sri Lanka, Dunedin
• 262 Stephen Fleming (2006), v South Africa, Cape Town
• 259 Glenn Turner (1972) v West Indies, Georgetown
• 239 Graham Dowling (1968) v India, Christchurch
• 230* Bert Sutcliffe (1955) v India, Delhi
• 224 Brendon McCullum (2010) v India, Hyderabad
• 224 Lou Vincent (2005) v Sri Lanka, Wellington
• 223* Glenn Turner (1972) v West Indies, Kingston
• 222 Nathan Astle (2002) v England, Christchurch
• 217* Ross Taylor (2013) v West Indies, Dunedin
• 214 Mathew Sinclair (1999) v West Indies, Wellington
• 206 Martin Donnelly (1949) v England, Lord's
• 204* Mathew Sinclair (2001) v Pakistan, Christchurch
• 202 Stephen Fleming (2004) v Bangladesh, Chittagong
• 201 Jesse Ryder (2009) v India, Napier
