What's New

  • Two children sifting through gravel

    16 Jul 2012

    Museum to share educational excursion expertise

    The Western Australian Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder will host a group of local primary school teachers for an Association of Independent Schools WA professional development event on 23 July.

    The teachers will take part in a Primary History Excursion Workshop exploring the living conditions, cultures and social lives of the people living in the Goldfields through the WA Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder’s collection of objects, photos, furniture and memorabilia.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • Harry Butler working on specimen preparation

    12 Jul 2012

    Harry Butler heading to Karratha

    The people of the Pilbara will receive a rare insight into the life of one of Australia’s most celebrated conservationists as part of the Western Australian Museum’s Harry Butler Lecture Series: In the Wild West.

    On Wednesday 25 July Dr Harry Butler, WA Museum Fellow and recently appointed Officer in the Order of Australia, will present ‘Museum collectors and carers: one collector’s story’ at the Tambrey Tavern and Function Centre in Karratha from 6:30pm.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A close-up photo of a pseudoscorpion specimen

    9 Jul 2012

    New discovery honours Darwin descendant

    A new species of pseudoscorpion found in Western Australia’s Wheatbelt region has been named Synsphyronus christopherdarwini in honour of the great-great-grandson of Charles Darwin.

    Western Australian Museum Head of Terrestrial Zoology, Dr Mark Harvey led the arachnid-focused team that discovered the new species.

    “The pseudoscorpion was found during a Bush Blitz expedition to Bush Heritage Australia’s Charles Darwin Reserve, 355km north-east of Perth, which documented plant and animal species” Dr Harvey said.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A crowd of people in front a large grass hut

    4 Jul 2012

    Revisiting the old Goldfields

    Take a trip back to old Kalgoorlie and explore the houses and gardens of yesteryear in a special lecture at the Western Australian Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder on 18 July.

    WA Museum Regional Manager Zoe Scott said the lecture, presented by local history enthusiast Robyn Horner, will provide a backstory to the classic federation style houses that line the Goldfield’s streets today.

    “Paddy Hannan’s discovery of gold in 1893 saw a sudden influx of people coming into the Goldfields,” Ms Scott said.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • Dr Mikael Siversson, Western Australian Museum Curator of Palaeontology, next to a cast of a Tyrannosaurus Rex

    3 Jul 2012

    Dinosaurs of the 21st Century: masters of the skies

    The surprising relationship between dainty neighbourhood ducks and the terrifying T-Rex will be revealed in the next In the Wild West lecture at the Western Australian Museum - Albany on 12 and 13 July.

    ‘Dinosaurs of the 21st Century: masters of the skies’, presented by Curator of Palaeontology Dr Mikael Siversson, will explain how 125 million year old raptor dinosaur fossils from China have confirmed the long-held belief birds and dinosaurs are closely related.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A silhouette of a child playing violin

    29 Jun 2012

    Post-World War II Australia in Pictures

    The iconic images of one of Australia's most renowned photographers, Max Dupain will be exhibited at the Western Australian Museum – Albany from 7 July.

    Dupain was famous for his modernist, documentary style of photography and his images of post-World War II Australia are widely regarded as important records of a changing society.

    Western Australian Museum – Albany Acting Regional Manager Catherine Salmaggi said his images, spanning from the 1940s to 1970s, offer a visual record of the ideology and culture of the time.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A drilling expedition in remote WA

    27 Jun 2012

    Downunder down under: collecting in the dark zone

    PLEASE NOTE: Please note this lecture will now be presented by Dr Mark Harvey, Head of Terrestrial Zoology.

    Discover the intriguing fieldwork of Western Australian Museum curators in some of the State’s most remote and diverse environments in the next In the Wild West lecture at the WA Maritime Museum on Friday 6 July.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • Fitting of Batavia Gallery with a 28lb cannon (cast in 1616) recovered from the wreck of the Batavia.

    22 Jun 2012

    Moving the Batavia Cannon

    This photo gallery documents the fitting of Batavia Gallery with a 28lb cannon (cast in 1616) recovered from the wreck of Batavia.

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    Photo Galleries
    Western Australian Museum

  • 20 Jun 2012

    Congratulations Dr. Harry Butler

    The honours and recognition keep coming for WA Museum Fellow and naturalist Dr. Harry Butler.

    On Monday 11 June 2012, Dr. Butler was appointed an Officer in the Order of Australia, in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

    This achievement follows on from Dr. Butler’s recent appointment as a National Living Treasure (March 2012) and reinforces the contribution that he has made to the conservation and restoration of Australia’s environment over the past 50 years.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • Dinosaur stuffed toys under a tree in a garden

    20 Jun 2012

    Museum gets crafty with dinosaurs

    The Western Australian Museum is hosting a free community craft day on Sunday 1 July and encouraging Perth sew-ers to come along to make toy dinosaurs.

    WA Museum Project Officer Renae Woodhams said the craft day was a great opportunity for Perth’s creative community to showcase their talents and to celebrate dinosaurs in all their forms.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A bright yellow box fish with striking black spots

    15 Jun 2012

    Free underwater photography seminars

    Western Australian diver and 2011 ANZANG Nature Photography category winner, Tammy Gibbs will reveal the secret to making the most of underwater photography in two free seminars at the Western Australian Museum- Geraldton this month.

    Ms Gibbs, the President of the Western Australian Underwater Photographic Society, said underwater photography offers a unique opportunity for its partakers and admirers to experience a whole new world beneath the sea surface.

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    News
    Danny Murphy

  • Professor Lyn Beazley in front of large stromatolite formations

    12 Jun 2012

    Western Australia: a Geological and Biological Wonderland

    The Western Australian Museum’s Harry Butler Lecture Series: In the Wild West will return to Geraldton this month with a lecture celebrating the wonderland that is Western Australia.

    Presented by Chief Scientist of Western Australia, Professor Lyn Beazley, ‘Western Australia: a Geological and Biological Wonderland’ will highlight the reasons our State is internationally recognised for its unique and diverse plant and animal species.  

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    News
    Danny Murphy

  • Zuytdorp exhibition display as it was installed in Kalbarri

    5 Jun 2012

    Artefacts to commemorate Zuytdorp anniversary

    • Artefacts lent to the Shire of Northampton to commemorate 300 year anniversary of the Zuytdorp shipwreck
    • Artefacts include rare porcelain and coins
    • Excavating the Zuytdorp exhibition part of Zest Festival; a five year event leading up to the 400th anniversary of the landing of Dirk Hartog.

    The Western Australian Museum has loaned 43 artefacts to the Shire of Northampton to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the wreck of Zuytdorp - a Dutch East India Ship lost in the winter of 1712 en route to Batavia (now Jakarta) from The Netherlands.

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    News
    Danny Murphy

  • Dr Ian Godfrey inside the living quarters of the Main Hut in Antarctica

    31 May 2012

    Exploration and conservation: the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 1911-1914

    The Western Australian Museum’s Harry Butler Lecture Series: In the Wild West will return to Albany this June with a lecture to celebrate the centenary of the first Australasian Antarctic Expedition.

    ‘Exploration and Conservation: the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 1911 – 1914’, presented by Western Australian Museum Senior Curator Dr Ian Godfrey will bring to life the lesser known aspects of this heroic era of Antarctic exploration.

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    News
    Danny Murphy

  • A building site from WA shown during the early 1950s

    24 May 2012

    Britain’s former child migrants tell their stories

    • Oral histories of child migrants recorded
    • Musical piece inspired by stories of child migrants
    • Exhibition features photographs, letters and mementoes

    The Western Australian Museum and Community Arts Network Western Australia (CAN WA) will launch an exhibition and community engagement program that commemorates the stories of child migrants, whose lives were changed forever by their migration experience.

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    News
    Western Australian Museum

  • A New Museum for WA

    18 May 2012

    A New Museum for WA

    Today, on International Museum Day, the Treasurer and Minister for Culture and the Arts announced the Western Australian State Government’s commitment to build a new museum through allocated funding.

    This is a project of unprecedented scale for the WA Museum with an estimated project cost of (AUD)$428.3 million. Construction is estimated to be completed in 2019-20.

    Situated in the heart of the city of Perth the new museum will include a state-of-the art building that integrates with the Museum’s current heritage buildings.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A close-up photo of a pseudoscorpion specimen

    11 May 2012

    New Discoveries in the World Around Us

    Join Western Australian Museum Senior Curator Dr Mark Harvey as he presents ‘New Discoveries in the World Around Us’, as part of the Harry Butler Lecture Series: In the Wild West, at the WA Museum – Perth on Tuesday 22 May at 12:30pm.

    The public lecture coincides with the International Day for Biological Diversity, and will celebrate how fortunate Western Australians are to live in one of the last regions of the world where new animal species are regularly found.

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    News
    Western Australian Museum

  • A small insect captured by a carnivorous plant

    9 May 2012

    Amazing ANZANG headed to WA Museum – Geraldton

    The popular ANZANG Nature Photography exhibition will return to the Western Australian Museum – Geraldton for its ninth year this May.

    The ANZANG Nature Photography exhibition celebrates the depth and diversity of nature in Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and New Guinea through the eyes of a photographer.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A huge crowd people gathered in the streets of Kalgoorlie

    7 May 2012

    An Everyday Transience in Kalgoorlie

    An exhibition celebrating the work of prominent Goldfields photographer John Joseph Dwyer will open at the WA Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder on Saturday 12 May, 2012.

    Exhibition co-curator Phillip Goldswain said the images in ‘An Everyday Transience’ offer a fantastic insight into what Goldfields life was like at the turn of the Twentieth Century.

    “Dwyer came to the Western Australian Goldfields in 1896, a time where many changes to the area’s industrial, social and physical landscape were being made,” Mr Goldswain said.

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    Western Australian Museum

  • A group of people excavating an archaeological site

    7 May 2012

    Dig deep for National Archaeology Week at the WA Museum

    To mark National Archaeology Week, the WA Museum – Perth will be hosting Dig Deep!, an event celebrating the fascinating work of archaeologists.

    On 12 and 13 May visitors will be able to speak to local WA associations who will be displaying the tools of their trade and discussing the techniques archaeologists use to uncover our past.

    WA Museum archaeologists will also be conducting an excavation to discover what lies beneath the Museum Grounds.

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    Western Australian Museum

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