Wellington Museum

Wellington Museum (formerly the Museum of City & Sea) is a museum on Queens Wharf in Wellington, New Zealand. It occupies the 1892 Bond Store, a historic building on Jervois Quay on the waterfront of Wellington Harbour. In 2013, it was voted by The Times as one of the world's 50 best museums.[1]

Not to be confused with Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.
For The Battle of Waterloo Museum, see Wellington Museum, Waterloo.

Wellington Museum
Wellington Museum in the Wellington Harbour Board Head Office and Bond Store building.
Former name
Museum of City & Sea
Established1972 (1972)
LocationWellington Harbour Board Head Office and Bond Store,3 Jervois Quay, Queens Wharf, Wellington, New Zealand
Websitemuseumswellington.org.nz

The museum has four floors covering the history of Wellington. Celebrating the city's maritime history, early Māori and European settlement, and the growth of the region, the museum seeks to tell Wellington's stories and how the city has evolved over its 150 years as capital of New Zealand. A giant cinema screen stretching between the ground, first and second floors shows a series of films about Wellington. There are three theatre areas: one tells Māori legends using a pepper's ghost, the other is a memorial to the sinking of the Wahine ferry in Wellington harbour and located on the top floor a Wellington Time Machine.[2] A new exhibition space, The Attic, opened in late 2015 after extensive refurbishment and restoration to the top floor.[3][4]

Background

The museum started in 1972 as the Wellington Maritime Museum of the Wellington Harbour Board.

In 1989, with the reorganisation of local bodies throughout New Zealand, the museum was transferred to the Wellington City Council (WCC) and expanded in scope to include social history of the region. The conversion of this building into the Museum of Wellington City & Sea was completed in 1999, and it became Wellington Museum in July 2015. It is run by Experience Wellington.[5]

Exhibitions

The museum contains various exhibits spread through three floors of the Wellington Harbour Board Head Office and Bond Store building.[6]

The Bond Store

This exhibit shows the layout of the historic museum building as it was in the late Victorian era, where it was used as a bonded cargo warehouse holding goods.

Telling Tales

Telling Tales explores the history of Wellington city throughout the 20th century using a collection of artefacts to mark significant events.

The gallery showcases the nautical history of Wellington. The gallery includes a full scale captains cabin, and a display commemorating Paddy the Wanderer.

The Wahine Theatre is in memory of the TEV Wahine disaster and includes items salvaged from the wreck as well as a theatre showing a short film by New Zealand filmmaker Gaylene Preston.

Von Kohorn Room

The Von Kohorn Room was once the boardroom of the Wellington Harbour Board.

References
  1. Rachel Campbell-Johnston (11 May 2013). "The world's 50 best museums" (PDF). reproduced at Soanefoundation.com. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  2. Joel Maxwell (7 November 2015). "From big bang to the future in 14 minutes: time machine to launch at Wellington Museum". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  3. Press release (11 November 2015). "Wellington Museum Unlocks Doors to the Attic". Scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  4. "Wellington's weirdest and wackiest attic". Stuff.co.nz. 12 November 2015. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  5. Maritime Heritage Trail (booklet by the WCC)
  6. "Wellington Museum". Museums Wellington. Retrieved 9 January 2021.


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