Now open
The new Atruim development built within the southern courtyard at the Museum consists of 7 storeys and transformed the internal courtyard from 1800m2 of temporary buildings to some 9000m2 of stunning architecture and increased the Museums footprint by 60%.
Visitors enter the new atrium from either the new 204 vehicle underground carpark or what was the Museums Administration entrance. Walking underneath one of the four legs of the megaframe that support the suspended Fijian kauri clad bowl, visitors look up four storeys to the glass rimmed perimeter.
Included in the new atruim space are visitor amenities such as the Columbus Cafe where delicious food, coffee and wine can be purchased while reading the latest copy of the NZ Herald; a retail-fix can be met by a browse through the new Museum Store catering for book lovers and family type gifts; new bathrooms, and of course entry to the new special exhibition hall which will host our internationally touring exhibitions. It is from the southern atrium that visitors can also access the permanent galleries either via Landmarks Gallery or the Encounter Gallery.
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On Saturday 9 December 2006, after 12 years of continuous building work and fundraising of about $113 million over that period, Auckland War Memorial Museum proudly threw open the doors to the brand new Dome bringing the Stage II Grand Atrium Project to a glorious and welcome conclusion.
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