What's New

  • HMAS Ovens at WA Maritime Museum

    6 Jan 2023

    WA Maritime Museum’s submarine HMAS Ovens make-over to begin

    The Western Australian Museum’s much-loved HMAS Ovens submarine is about to begin its face lift and make-over, which will include the repair and repainting of the hull surface to return the vessel to its former glory.

    Ovens will close temporarily on 9th January to allow staff and contractors time to prepare the submarine for works.

    The former navy submarine is a popular exhibit at the WA Maritime Museum. However, the external hull and paintwork require urgent treatment to ensure the submarine’s future as a key part of WA’s naval history.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • 2023 Season Launch

    19 Dec 2022

    WA Museum 2023 season launch

    We are fast approaching the end of 2022, and while it has been a year of great things for Western Australian Museum, we are excited about what is up ahead in 2023 and we can't wait to share it with you.

    Over the past 12 months, we have welcomed more than one million visitors through our doors across the state. Our teams have provided over 500 programs, events, and activities, and hosted 56 temporary exhibitions across our seven unique WA Museum sites.

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    News
    Katherine Jeffries

  • Director of Engagement WA Museum Boola Bardip Jason Fair, Director of Exhibitions and Touring at ACMI Chris Harris, Culture and the Arts Minister David Templeman and Chief Executive Office WA Museum Alec Coles.

    15 Dec 2022

    Come and fall down the rabbit hole, and into Wonderland

    Upend your expectations and reward your curiosity at the playful and highly immersive Wonderland exhibition, now on at the WA Museum Boola Bardip.

    Wonderland celebrates the screen history of Lewis Carroll’s timeless stories – Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • Gnomes Wonderland light up mushroom.

    8 Dec 2022

    WA Museum Christmas gift guide

    If you’re strapped for Christmas gift ideas, the Western Australian Museum has you covered. With gift cards, brand new upcoming exhibitions and tours, or even something special from the Museums eclectic retail store, you will find something for everyone here.

    Here are our top five Christmas gift ideas to celebrate the holidays with the WA Museum. 


    WA Museum Store 

    Monday - Sunday | 9.30am - 5pm

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • The WA Maritime Museum under construction in 2001.

    8 Dec 2022

    WA Maritime Museum celebrates 20th anniversary with live music and extended opening hours

    WA Maritime Museum will celebrate 20 years of history, heritage, and exhibitions this Saturday, December 10, with a free family-friendly event and extended opening hours.

    Located along Walyalup’s stunning harbourside, WA Maritime Museum was officially opened to the public on December 1, 2002, by the former Premier of WA Dr Geoff Gallop.

    The opening was marked by a spectacular fly-past by Hawk 127 fighters from the Royal Australian Air Force 79 Squadron and Dr Gallop said it was one of the most imaginative facilities ever built by a State Government.

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    Article
    Kasper Johansen

  • Cleverman

    5 Dec 2022

    Aboriginal storytelling from award-winning Cleverman series on show at the Museum of Geraldton

    A free exhibition celebrating the award-winning television series, Cleverman, opens at the Museum of Geraldton, on 3 December 2022.

    The exhibition is based on the dystopian sci-fi series that stormed onto ABC TV in 2016, and explores the deep themes of Aboriginal storytelling.

    With a predominantly Aboriginal cast and senior crew, the series explores a range of Aboriginal origin stories in a contemporary context with political nuance, touching on themes of class, racism and power.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • 28 Nov 2022

    Fremantle Then and Now: Historical Panoramas exhibition wins Interpretation Project at 2022 WA Heritage Award

    The WA Maritime Museum has been announced as the winner of the Interpretation Project category at the 2022 WA Heritage Award for its Fremantle Then and Now: Historical Panoramas exhibition.

    Led by WA Museum, in collaboration with Curtin University Hub for Immersive Visualisation and eResearch (HIVE), the exhibition uses 20 panoramas and digital projection technologies to explore 155 years of Walyalup Fremantle history.

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    News
    Madeleine Pengelly

  • Artefacts musket balls and spring shot found 2022 Vergulde Draeck

    25 Nov 2022

    Return of Dutch shipwreck artefacts to Western Australian Museum

    Several artefacts, believed to be from Vergulde Draeck (Gilt Dragon) wrecked off the coast near Ledge Point in 1656, were returned to Western Australian Museum today.

    Leon Pule and Hanneley Tredoux, found the artefacts while on a camping trip and doing some recreational metal detecting in the area. The couple were unsure what they had come across but felt it was important.

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    News
    Robyn Ambrosius

  • Dr Glenn Moore diving next to a cod.

    10 Nov 2022

    The fishy work of WA Museum’s fish scientist

    Dr Glenn Moore is the Curator of Fish at WA Museum and the State-recognised authority for the identification and taxonomy of marine and freshwater fish. He is regularly involved in scientific projects to grow our understanding of Western Australian biodiversity and biogeography.

    In his role as Curator, Glenn is responsible for maintaining the quality, documentation and development of the State’s fish collection, which includes almost 200,000 specimens from around the world. 

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • Exterior photo of WA Maritime Museum from across the port looking back at the museum.

    9 Nov 2022

    Help shape the future of our Museums in Fremantle

    Call for Expressions of Interest

    The Western Australian Museum is seeking expressions of interest from the community to join the Fremantle Museums Advisory Committee. 

    About the role

    The primary role of the Advisory Committee is to link the WA Museum with the community it serves.  As an Advisory Committee member you will be a representative for the community in your work with the WA Museum and an advocate for the WA Museum in the community.

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    News
    Robyn Ambrosius

  • The 1.6-metre high Australovenator model, Image courtesy of WA Museum Boola Bardip, Credit Remote Digital Imagery.

    9 Nov 2022

    Dinosaurs to storm the Museum of the Great Southern

    Inspire your curiosity at the Museum of the Great Southern this summer when it is taken over by animatronic, life-size dinosaurs from Saturday 12 November 2022.

    Dinosaur Explore: Lost Creatures of the Cretaceous brings to life some of the extraordinary dinosaurs of Earth’s Cretaceous period in a spine-tingling, Western Australian Museum-curated exhibition featuring 14 life-size dinosaur models.

    Museum of the Great Southern Regional Manager, Catherine Salmaggi, said the exhibition was set to transform the Museum into the Cretaceous era habitat.

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    News
    Robyn Ambrosius

  • Harriet Gillies and Xanthe Dobbie

    9 Nov 2022

    Sell-out show Queer PowerPoint comes to WA Museum

    Queer PowerPoint is heading to WA Museum Boola Bardip for one night only on Thursday 18 November.

    Queer PowerPoint is a comedy show that dives headfirst into the ideas, obsessions, fascinations and deeply felt convictions of queer individuals.

    The show has only one rule, presenters must share their ideas in 10-minutes using the most staid, straight, and ubiquitous programming tool – Microsoft PowerPoint!

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    News
    Robyn Ambrosius

  • The Speaking Equally panel (left to right): Elizabeth Lang,  Fadzi Whande, Bobbi Henry and  Sender Dovchin

    3 Nov 2022

    Racism: Having the difficult conversation at WA Museum

    Explicit and casual racism continue to be a daily experience for many Australians, as evidenced by recent events in WA.

    It is therefore, perhaps timely that the next scheduled In Conversation event at the WA Museum Boola Bardip deals with the difficult and complex issue of racism.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • A Gastropoda, Conus Geographus or Cone Shell found near Cassini Island, Kimberley.

    12 Oct 2022

    Life as an Aquatic Zoologist: The important work of Dr Lisa Kirkendale

    Have you ever wondered what interesting facts slimy aquatic snails and underwater creatures can tell us about the world they live in?

    Also known as “molluscs”, these gastropods are the second largest phylum (or group) of invertebrate animals in the world.

    Although some can measure just a few millimetres, these mighty molluscs are powerhouses of information and provide important insights into aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems.

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • A group of inflatable dinosaurs outside Boola Bardip

    28 Sep 2022

    Dinosaurs cause chaos in the city

    A herd of dinosaurs rampaged through Perth today on their way to the Dinosaurs of Patagonia exhibition at the WA Museum Boola Bardip.

    Dinosaurs joined commuters on Transperth bus services, before making their way through Perth Train station to the Perth Cultural Centre and into the WA Museum Boola Bardip where they joined their Patagonian friends!

    Dinosaurs of Patagonia is a remarkable, ‘world-first’ exhibition, featuring the world’s largest dinosaur Patagotitan: but it is only in WA until October 23!

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • Black and white image of the view from South Mole Fremantle 1904

    23 Sep 2022

    New panoramic exhibition explores changing face of Fremantle over 155 years

    The WA Maritime Museum today opened its doors to Fremantle Then & Now: Historical Panoramas – a new, immersive, and interactive exhibition exploring the changing face of Fremantle from the 1800s to the present day.

    Through sweeping historical panoramic photographs, taken at seven vantage points across the port city, the exhibition provides a unique opportunity to explore 155 years of history, using immersive digital projection technologies developed by the Curtin University Hub for Immersive Visualisation and eResearch (HIVE).

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    News
    Flora Perrella

  • Father and child enjoying school holidays at the WA Museum

    21 Sep 2022

    September school holidays across all WA Museum sites

    Stuck for ideas on how to entertain the kids these school holidays? Then you’ve come to the right place.

    Our holiday programs are jam-packed with fun activities to suit kids of every age - even the grown-up ones!

    With museums spread across the state, we’ve got you covered with everything from free events to drop and leave programs to exciting exhibitions and so much more.

    Our six locations include:

    WA Museum Boola Bardip

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    News
    Kasper Johansen

  • A group of scientists, rangers and Traditional Owners standing together for a photo in the Kimberley region.

    16 Sep 2022

    WA Museum fieldwork research on pseudoscorpions, assassin bugs and bandicoots on Wunambal Gaambera Country

    A recent fieldtrip with Wunambal Gaambera Aboriginal Corporation (WGAC), saw some of our scientists carry out exciting research on Wunambal Gaambera Country in the far north of the Kimberley region of Western Australia.

    Joining the fieldtrip from the Western Australian Museum was Head of Terrestrial Zoology and Curator of Arachnids and Myriapods Dr Mark Harvey, Curator of Mammalogy Dr Kenny Travouillon, Curator of Entomology Dr Nikolai Tatarnic, and Technical Officer Jenelle Ritchie.

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    News
    Yoshika Kon

  • A gloved hand holds a large cowrie shell.

    14 Sep 2022

    Precious black cowrie shell donated to WA Museum Boola Bardip

    In a generous act of philanthropy, an incredibly rare and valuable black cowrie shell found in Western Australian waters was recently gifted to the Western Australian Museum’s Aquatic Zoology department.

    Hailing from the Mollusc phylum, the Leporicypraea geographica rewa form rovae cowrie shell was found off the coast of Exmouth in a 24-metre-deep sea sponge garden.

    More commonly known as sea snails, cowries are nocturnal by nature, living in underwater caves and hiding under rocks during the day and feeding on coral and algae at night.

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    News
    Yoshika Kon

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