Hardens Hand Grenade Fire Extinguisher. Photographer: Andrea Hearfield.Te Papa

A little while ago I told you about the return of the Masterton Museum collection to Aratoi, thereby honouring a 58 year-old agreement.  In that collection there were some really interesting items so I thought I would tell you about another one of them. It is a very pretty blueRead more

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This is a recent photo of me (Heidi Meudt) taken here in Oldenburg. I will sign off in German by saying: Auf wiedersehen, bis bald! Photo by Mauricio Lopez.

Back in July, I attended the 2012 Botany Conference, which was held in Columbus, OH, USA, and later this month, I will attend the “Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology” meeting of the German Botanical Society (DBG) in Mainz, Germany.  Why so much international travel, you may ask, and why is itRead more

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As part of celebrating Tongan Language Week: Uike Kātonga’i ‘o e Lea Faka-Tonga (1-8 September) the Pacific Cultures team are highlighting some of the Tongan items in Te Papa’s collection. Today’s blog is the last of our series. Tongan fangufangu (nose flutes) are beautifully crafted musical instruments. Historically, fangufangu were used to awakenRead more

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Written by Lucy Moore, Exhibition Supervisor One of the joys of being a Te Papa Host is when that ‘light bulb’ moment happens – when a visitor sees or experiences something profoundly new as a result of being in an exhibition.  We’ve had many of these moments in Kahu OraRead more

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As part of celebrating Tongan Language Week: Uike Kātonga’i ‘o e Lea Faka-Tonga (1-8 September) the Pacific Cultures team are highlighting some of the Tongan items in Te Papa’s collection. This is the  fourth blog in our series. Tongan ngatu also known as tapa cloth is an important part of Tongan art and tradition. TeRead more

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People on a boat

Tonga’s Queen Sālote (1900–65) contributed greatly to the preservation and creative use of the Tongan language. Queen Sālote was a celebrated writer of poetry and song. She composed over one hundred songs, lullabies, laments, and dances. Queen Sālote has a connection with New Zealand that began in 1909 when sheRead more

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“Dear friends, may this beautiful instrument bring you happiness and inspiration. All my love, Lili Kraus, London, Christmas 1959.” So read the handwritten inscription in the piano Michael Parekowhai obtained for On First Looking into Chapman’s Homer currently on display at Te Papa. In the museum’s collection there are photographs of Lili takenRead more

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This week is Tongan Language Week – Uike Kātoanga’i ‘o e Lea Faka-Tonga. This is the second blog post for this week where the Pacific Cultures team highlight collection items that relate to Tongan language and culture. This is a kumete, a wooden bowl used in Tongan communities for the preparationRead more

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This week is Tongan Language Week – Uike Kātoanga’i ‘o e Lea Faka-Tonga. Over the next five days the Pacific Cultures team will be blogging about collection items from Tonga that relate to Tongan language and culture. The week is promoted by the Aotearoa Tongan Teachers Association in partnership with theRead more

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Veranoa Hetet and her group of weavers Te Rōpu Miro have been the weavers in residence for the  Kahu Ora Living Cloaks exhibition for the last few weeks. Time goes so fast and it’s hard to believe this will be their last weekend at Te Papa, as they finish on Sunday 2 September. Veranoa and herRead more

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Ship's biscuit. Photographer: Robert Clendon.Te Papa

In any museum collection you will find items or entire collections that were lent at some point in the distant past, sometimes more than a hundred years ago.  It is always rewarding when a relationship is re-established with the owner and the items or collection can be returned to itsRead more

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