Blog

Auckland Museum’s Women in Wartime event showcased the stories of nurse Nina May Palmer and Warrant Officer Catherine Frances Bryers, spotlighting women’s often-overlooked wartime roles. Hosted in July 2025, it demonstrated how Online Cenotaph and Wikipedia collaborate to broaden access, counter systemic bias, and amplify women’s histories through the Women in Red movement.

To celebrate Papua New Guinea Language Week, Curator of Entomology Dr Leilani Walker shares some of the insect species native to Papua New Guinea, one of the richest biodiversity hubs in the world.

Te Hokioi e rere atu na; the first newspaper in te Reo Māori, printed by the Kīngitanga 1862 - 1863.

In celebration of 2025 Tonga Language Week, we profile writer Nalesoni Tupou and his 1977-1978 literary contribution for the Tāmaki Makaurau Mana newspaper. The Mana: Protest in Print exhibition is currently on until October 2026.

Our Foundation Stone has reached a milestone - and no small one either! In this blog we take a look back at the laying of the Foundation Stone - 100 years on.

Queen Sālote Tupou III was one of Tonga’s greatest monarchs. She reigned over Tonga for 48 years, longer than any Tongan monarch, from 1918-1965. Considered as the one of the epochs of a cultural revitalisation in Tonga, Queen Sālote composed over 100 songs and poems, each using traditional Tongan metrics and poetics to highlight Tongan history, culture and the Royal Family.

For nearly twenty years the tamariki of Auckland have discovered the Museum under the cover of darkness at Night at Auckland Museum - but what exactly is that? In this blog we grab our torches and find out.

In recognition of the 2025 Vaiaso o le Gagana Samoa (Samoan Language week), we profile the Samoan writer Maulolo Asiata Wairaki Toevai, and his literary contribution to the 1977-1978 multilingual Pacific Tāmaki Makaurau newspaper, Mana. Written in seven additional languages, the newspaper was a meeting place for many communities engaged in social justice and Māori and Pacific story sovereignty.

For a Roman nail to survive thousands of years and make it all the way to Auckland Museum's collection, is a feat against the odds. But to have received two sets of these nails, is the result of a chain of serendipitous events, ancient and modern. Each link of this chain holds stories and information which increase our understanding of ancient technologies and rituals, modern museum practices, scientific analyses, and conservation methods.

When you think of gulls in Auckland you probably picture a large black-backed pirate, swooping down to snatch hot chips at the beach, but new research is revealing just how remarkable these birds really are.

In celebration of 2025 Cook Islands Language Week, we profile writer Nihi Vini and his 1977-1978 literary contribution for the Tāmaki Makaurau Mana newspaper. The Mana: Protest in Print exhibition is currently on until October 2026.

In celebration of 2025 Rotuman Language Week, we profile the Rotuman writer John Antonio and his 1977-1978 literary contribution of the for the Tāmaki Makaurau Mana newspaper. The Mana: Protest in Print exhibition is currently on until October 2026.