Last week, we received the sad news that textile designer Avis Higgs had passed away just a few days after celebrating her 98th birthday. History curator Claire Regnault pays tribute to ‘a truly awesome woman.’Read more
Catwalk glamour This week I’ve been working on couture garments that are destined for display at Expressions in Upper Hutt. The Catwalk to Cover exhibition will include fashions from Te Papa’s collection by international and New Zealand designers alongside photographs that capture the dynamism, creativity and glamour that epitomize theRead more
20 October marked a significant milestone at Te Papa when Gallipoli: The scale of our war’s one millionth visitor and a friend were escorted through the exhibition. That number is almost equal to New Zealand’s population (1.1 million) during the war, 100 years ago. We’ve reached this phenomenal figure in just 18Read more
It can take a while for the public to warm up to experimental innovations, but often they can become unanimous or even necessary. Virtual reality, or VR, is one of these innovations, and it has the potential to take over every industry we can think of; The culture sector, and Te Papa included.Read more
Taumaka is a 20-hectare Māori-owned island lying about 4 km off the South Westland coast. Colin Miskelly describes the wildlife he encountered there on his latest visit. Read more
Finding and naming new species is a core part of the job for Te Papa’s scientists. More than 2500 animal and plant species have been named by museum staff since 1865. A recent example is the fern Asplenium lepidotum, described by myself and Pat Brownsey. This brings the number ofRead more
![Rugby jersey [1905 replica], 2011, New Zealand, by Robertina Downes, Deborah Cumming, Manawatu Knitting Mills Ltd, New Zealand Rugby Museum. Commissioned 2011. Te Papa (GH017325). After padding out for display.](https://i0.wp.com/blog.tepapa.govt.nz/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/after-padding-out.jpg?fit=445%2C550&ssl=1)
Recently I blogged about preparing an 18th century gown (now on display in European Splendour). A few weeks ago, the same skills were applied to a very different type of garment—the replica All Blacks “Originals” 1905 jersey. The Replica Project The jersey is the outcome of a multiyear project headed byRead more
Collecting fraught and hard-fought aspects of history is part of our role here at Te Papa, and given that last month was Queer History Month, I thought I would look at the acquisition of the Destiny Church ‘Enough is Enough’ t-shirt. These t-shirts were collected in 2012 to be partRead more
Why are botanic gardens important? And what does this have to do with Te Papa?Read more
Retired Wellington botanist Dr John Dawson was presented the Allan Mere today. This award, administered by the New Zealand Botanical Society, recognises botanists who have made an outstanding contribution to New Zealand botany.Read more
History curator Claire Regnault discusses why signature cloths become ‘a thing’ and what their purpose was for.Read more
New technology is making it easier than ever to offer everyone a glimpse behind the scenes at Te Papa. We’ve shared tens of thousands of images collection objects in high resolution, and we’ve opened our venue spaces to Google Maps so that you can peek inside the museum. Recently, we’ve beenRead more
My name is Heidi Meudt and I’m a Research Scientist in Botany at Te Papa, currently doing taxonomic research on New Zealand’s native forget-me-nots. As part of my job, I occasionally attend scientific conferences in New Zealand and overseas. I’ve blogged before about some of the reasons that international conferences are importantRead more
Finding Cecil Malthus in a muddy shell hole at the end of Gallipoli: The scale of our war reminds visitors that many Gallipoli veterans like Cecil went on to face more hardship on the Western Front. Just over 100 years ago, in September 1916, Cecil fought in the Battle ofRead more
See fur seal pups, prions, little penguins, and Fiordland crested penguins caught on camera through a burrowscope lens on Taumaka (Open Bay Islands).Read more
