All collection
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Aboriginal cultures collection
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
The representation of Western Australian Aboriginal cultures has been a significant focus of the Museum since its inception in 1892. The early collections reflect hunting and gathering lifestyles, and personal adornment of the peoples of the South West, Pilbara, Desert and Kimberley regions.
The collection traces the impact and influence of Europeans on the Aboriginal peoples of Western Australia and includes objects representing the innovative use of introduced materials and the continuity of Aboriginal traditional knowledge and skills.
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Ancient Egyptian collection
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
As part of the 19th century belief that the Ancient Worlds were a window into the past, and also that a display of ancient objects reflected a civilised and cultured society, the Western Australian Museum acquired numerous objects from early 20th century excavations in Egypt. Other objects in this collection have been donated or purchased to reflect ancient Egyptian culture.
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Arachnid and Myriapod Collection
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
This collection contains representatives of arachnids and myriapods, chiefly from Western Australia, but including specimens from other Australian regions and elsewhere in the world. Most specimens are stored in ethanol or slide-mounted. This collection serves primarily as a reference and research collection rather than for display.
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Archaeology collection
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
The Archaeology Collection from the Anthropology and Archaeology department focuses on Western Australian Aboriginal archaeological materials, predominantly stone tools, but including plant and faunal materials from excavated sites.
The collection also focuses on Western Australian Historic Archaeology, predominantly material from sites that relate to non-Aboriginal settlement e.g. convict/ police sites and including contact period sites where Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal cultural materials intersect e.g. pastoral stations, missions, Lock Hospitals.
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Care of the WA Museum collections
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
The primary role of the Materials Conservation department is to ensure the longevity and perpetuity of the Western Australian Museum collections for research, reference and exhibition.
Some of interesting case studies are detailed below:
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Crawford collection - West Kimberley images 1961-1993
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
Former staff member Ian Crawford was the Western Australian Museum’s first Curator of Anthropology & Archaeology, appointed in 1961. Between 1961 and 1993 he made 30 fieldtrips to the Kimberley, working with Aboriginal communities focusing on research into art and mythology, contact with Indonesian and Malay fishermen, maintenance of knowledge of traditional resource use and mission history. His photographic collection includes around 30,000 images.
This extensive image collection reflects Crawford’s work with Kimberley community members, particularly Kalumburu.
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Crustacea Section
0 Collections | Updated 4 weeks ago
The Crustacean Collection of the Western Australian Museum comprises marine, freshwater and terrestrial animals, which total over 103,000 specimens.
Crustaceans are part of the phylum Arthropoda, which are invertebrates with a hard outer skeleton (cuticle) and jointed legs. This group includes animals such as spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites, centipedes, millipedes and of course crustaceans such as lobsters, crabs, prawns and barnacles.
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Entomology (Insect) Collection
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
This collection contains representatives of all kinds of insects, chiefly from Western Australia, but including specimens from other Australian states and elsewhere in the world. Specimens are dried and pinned, preserved in ethanol, or slide-mounted. This collection serves primarily as a reference and research collection rather than for display.
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Fish (Ichthyology) Section
0 Collections | Updated 4 weeks ago
The Western Australian Museum's Fish Collection comprises 175,000 specimens from 319 different families.
Fish specimens have been collected since 1896 – only five years after the Western Australian Museum (then Perth Museum) was established. A separate fish section was established in 1970.
From 1912 hand-written records of fish specimens have been kept, with some of the oldest documented specimens being a seadragon from Bunbury and a pygmy perch from the Vasse River, Busselton.
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Fossil Collection
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
The Fossil Collection comprises approximately 1,500,000 specimens and is divided into five main categories: vertebrate body fossils, invertebrate body fossils, plant fossils, structures built by bacteria (ie, stromatolites), and trace fossils (eg, trackways and burrows).
Specimens from all continents are represented, although the main focus of the collection is on Western Australia.
Within the vertebrate fossils collection, significant items include:
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Herpetology (Reptiles and Frogs) Collection
0 Collections | Updated 1 month ago
The Herpetology collection contains specimens of reptiles and frogs from throughout Australia and South-East Asia but predominantly Western Australia. The majority of the collection is preserved in alcohol but some dried and skeletal material is also maintained. The collection is used largely for research and reference but also serves a vital role in public education through museum exhibitions. New and exciting discoveries within the collection continue to be made every year.
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History Department collection
0 Collections | Updated 5 days ago
The History department specialises in developing collections reflecting the material life of Western Australians, and presenting the stories of people and place in Western Australia in all their diversity.
Some of the highlights of the History department's collection are featured here.