A collection of books showing spine-out. Some are sitting on top of each other, and some are side-by-side.

One of the best ways to explore Te Papa’s collections is through the dozens of books published by Te Papa Press. The objects discussed within their pages also appear on Collections Online, which records over a million items from Te Papa’s collection. Seeing an opportunity to connect its titles with these digital object records, Te Papa Press is creating publication records for its titles on Collections Online.Read more

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In: Behind the scenes, Collections Online
A cream-coloured stamp with a green border and rust-coloured image of a bird sitting in a tree.

The Manumea, or tooth-billed pigeon (Didunculus strigirostris), is an endemic bird of Sāmoa, currently on the brink of extinction. How can museums help to protect this national treasure? In this blog, Research Assistant Annika Sung examines how Te Papa’s collections can teach us about the Manumea and its entwined relationship to various aspects of Sāmoan life and culture.Read more

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In: Art, Pacific, Science

Each year, several biology and ecology postgraduate students are co-supervised by Te Papa natural history researchers. One of these students, Weixuan Ning, has completed his PhD at Massey University in Plant Biology. His co-supervisors – Botany Curator Heidi Meudt and Associate Professor Jen Tate – talk about his time as a Massey and Te Papa student, and the mahi he has been involved in.Read more

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In: Behind the scenes, Science
A white spiral shell with iridescence.

On April 10, 2024, Te Papa reached a significant milestone by publishing its one-millionth catalogue record on Kohinga Ipurangi Collections Online – a rare seashell. This milestone showcases our dedication to preserving Aotearoa New Zealand’s diverse collection of taonga Māori, art, history, Pacific, and natural sciences. This achievement reflects the collaborative efforts of multiple teams involved in collecting, identifying, processing, data management, photographing, licensing images, and iwi consultation. Mollusc curator Kerry Walton highlights the intricate work involved and the beauty of the one-millionth item on Collections Online.Read more

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In: Behind the scenes, Collections Online, Science
A black and white photograph of the lower half of a person holding two handfuls of seaweed that are long strings of bobbles.

As part of a summer research project, Lucia Adams from Botany and Annie Barnard from Art are working with Te Papa’s collection of Nancy Adams’ works. Annie and Lucia are digitising botanical specimens that Nancy collected, enriching catalogue records of her artworks and archival material, and doing research and writing about her work and influence. They are taking a series of field trips to sites that were important in Nancy’s life and work, as well as interviewing people who were important in Nancy’s life.Read more

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In: Art, History, Science
A sepia photo of a woman in a swimming costume sitting on a wet sandy beach.

As part of a summer research project, Lucia Adams from Botany and Annie Barnard from Art are working with Te Papa’s collection of Nancy Adams’ works. Annie and Lucia will be digitising botanical specimens that Adams collected, enriching catalogue records of her artworks and archival material, and doing research and writing about her work and influence. They are taking a series of field trips to sites that were important in Nancy’s life and work. Here is the first in a series of blogs documenting these trips.Read more

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In: Art, History, Science

The Sāmoan Multiplicities research project, headed by Dr Safua Akeli Amaama (Te Papa) and Prof. Philipp Schorch (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität), explores how contemporary Sāmoan identity is spatially and temporally distributed, as well as how and why Sāmoan-ness remains intact despite past and present ongoing transformations. In this blog, Research Assistant Annika Sippel presents an overview of the project so far and considers some of the avenues in which our own collections can engage with ideas of Sāmoan Multiplicities.Read more

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In: Pacific