The Australian Museum is a heritage-listed museum at 1
William Street,
Sydney central business district
The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or c ...
,
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, Australia. It is the oldest
museum
A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...
in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
[Design 5, 2016, p.1] and the fifth oldest natural history museum in the world, with an international reputation in the fields of
natural history and
anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...
.
It was first conceived and developed along the contemporary European model of an encyclopedic warehouse of cultural and natural history and features collections of
vertebrate
Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, ...
and
invertebrate
Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...
zoology
Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...
, as well as
mineralogy
Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the proces ...
,
palaeontology and
anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...
. Apart from exhibitions, the museum is also involved in Indigenous studies research and community programs. In the museum's early years, collecting was its main priority, and specimens were commonly traded with British and other European institutions. The scientific stature of the museum was established under the curatorship of
Gerard Krefft
Johann Ludwig (Louis) Gerard Krefft (17 February 1830 – 19 February 1881), a talented artist and draughtsman, and the Curator of the Australian Museum for 13 years (1861-1874), was one of Australia's first and most influential zoologists and ...
, himself a published scientist.
The museum is located at the corner of
William Street and
College Street in the
Sydney central business district
The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or c ...
, in the
City of Sydney
The City of Sydney is the local government area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established by Act of Parliament in 1842, th ...
local government area of
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, and was originally known as the Colonial Museum or Sydney Museum. The museum was renamed in June 1836 by a sub-committee meeting, when it was resolved during an argument that it should be renamed the "Australian Museum". The Australian Museum building and its collection was added to the
New South Wales State Heritage Register
The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...
on 2 April 1999.
The museum is mentioned in the poem ''William Street'' by notable Australian poet
Henry Lawson
Henry Archibald Hertzberg Lawson (17 June 1867 – 2 September 1922) was an Australian writer and bush poet. Along with his contemporary Banjo Paterson, Lawson is among the best-known Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial perio ...
.
Its current CEO and Executive Director is
Kim McKay
Kim Coral McKay (born 1959) is an Australian environmentalist, author, entrepreneur and business person. Since April 2014, she has been the Director and CEO of the Australian Museum, the first woman to hold the position in the museum's 191-year h ...
.
Establishment
![Powerhouse Museum Collection - (Australian) Museum, Sydney (pd)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Powerhouse_Museum_Collection_-_%28Australian%29_Museum%2C_Sydney_%28pd%29.jpg)
The establishment of a museum had first been planned in 1821 by the Philosophical Society of Australasia, and although specimens were collected, the Society folded in 1822. An
entomologist
Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...
and fellow of the
Linnean Society of London
The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature colle ...
,
Alexander Macleay
Alexander Macleay (also spelt McLeay) MLC FLS FRS (24 June 1767 – 18 July 1848) was a leading member of the Linnean Society, a fellow of the Royal Society and member of the New South Wales Legislative Council.
Life
Macleay was born on Ro ...
, arrived in 1826. After being appointed New South Wales
Colonial Secretary, he began lobbying for a museum.
The museum was founded in 1827 by
Earl Bathurst
Earl Bathurst, of Bathurst in the County of Sussex, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain.
The medieval English word was Botehurst, thought to date at least from the 13th century. Bote is the origination of Battle, although the family m ...
, then the
Secretary of State for the Colonies
The secretary of state for the colonies or colonial secretary was the Cabinet of the United Kingdom, British Cabinet government minister, minister in charge of managing the United Kingdom's various British Empire, colonial dependencies.
Histor ...
, who wrote to the Governor of
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
of his intention to found a public museum and who provided yearly towards its upkeep.
In 1832
George Bennett, curator of the Australian Museum, explained the role of the museum:
From a "beautiful Collection of Australian curiosities", the Museum has grown to an internationally recognised collection of over 21 million cultural and scientific objects. The Museum plays a leading role in taxonomic and systematic research, and at its research station at Lizard Island conducts significant research on coral reef ecology. Through exhibitions and other public programs the Australian Museum continues to inform and amaze generations of visitors about the unique flora, fauna and cultures of Australia and the Pacific.
[Hammond, 2009, 1][
]
Building
The heritage
Heritage may refer to:
History and society
* A heritage asset is a preexisting thing of value today
** Cultural heritage is created by humans
** Natural heritage is not
* Heritage language
Biology
* Heredity, biological inheritance of physical c ...
-listed[ building has evolved to encompass a range of different architectural styles and when its building expanded, it was often in conjunction with an expansion of the collections.
]
The first location of the museum in 1827 was probably a room in the offices of the Colonial Secretary, although over the following thirty years it had several other locations in Sydney, until it moved into its current home in 1849. The Long Gallery is part of the wing designed by New South Wales Colonial Architect Mortimer Lewis
Mortimer William Lewis (1796 – 9 March 1879) was an English-born architect, surveyor and public servant who migrated to Australia and became New South Wales Government Architect, Colonial Architect in the colony of New South Wales (now a state ...
, and the earliest building on the site, . This is a handsome building of Sydney sandstone in the Greek Revival
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
style on the corner of College and William Streets, opposite Hyde Park
Hyde Park may refer to:
Places
England
* Hyde Park, London, a Royal Park in Central London
* Hyde Park, Leeds, an inner-city area of north-west Leeds
* Hyde Park, Sheffield, district of Sheffield
* Hyde Park, in Hyde, Greater Manchester
Austra ...
, designed by the Colonial Architect James Barnet
James Johnstone Barnet, (1827 in Almericlose, Arbroath, Scotland – 16 December 1904 in Forest Lodge, Sydney, New South Wales) was the Colonial Architect for Colonial New South Wales, serving from 1862 to 1890.
Early life
Born the son of a ...
, and it was first opened to the public in May 1857.[
In order to accommodate the expanding collections of the museum, Barnet was responsible for the construction of the neoclassical west wing along William Street in 1868. A third storey was added to the north Lewis wing in 1890, bringing cohesion to the building design.
In 1963, the floor space of the museum almost doubled when Joseph van der Steen under the Government Architect, Edward Farmer, designed a six-story extension linked to the Lewis building for the scientific and research collections, the reference library and a public restaurant. There were also two basement floors providing workspace for scientific staff. This International Style extension became known as the Parkes/Farmer eastern wing. In 1977, to mark the Museum's 150th anniversary, bronze lower case letters were added to the ]façade
A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a Loanword, loan word from the French language, French (), which means 'frontage' or 'face'.
In architecture, the façade of a building is often t ...
identifying the building as "The Australian Museum".
In 2008 a significant expansion took place on the College street site with the addition of the new Collection and Research building which added 5000 square metres of office, laboratory and storage areas for scientists. In the same year two new permanent galleries were opened, "Dinosaurs" and "Surviving Australia".
In 2015, the museum's carbon-neutral glass box entryway known as the "Crystal Hall" was opened. Designed by Neeson-Murcutt, it returned the entry to William Street and provided access via a suspended walkway. In December 2016 the Museum made public a $285 million master plan proposing to greatly expand its available exhibition space, by adding a 13-storey building on the block's east, adding a large central glazed atrium space.[Power, 2016][
]
Administration
The museum was administered directly by the colonial government until June 1836, until the establishment of a Committee of Superintendence of the Australian Museum and Botanical Garden. Sub-committees were established for each institution. Members of these committees were generally the leading members of the political and scientific classes of Sydney; and scions of the Macleay served until 1853, at which point the committee was abolished. In that year, the government enacted the Australian Museum Act, thereby incorporating it and establishing a board of trustees
A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...
consisting of 24 members. William Sharp Macleay
William Sharp Macleay or McLeay (21 July 1792 – 26 January 1865) was a British civil servant and entomologist. He was a prominent promoter of the Quinarian system of classification.
After graduating, he worked for the British embassy in Par ...
, the former committee chairman, continued to serve as the chairman of this committee.
Curators and directors
The position of "curator" was renamed "director and curator" in 1918 and from, 1921 "director". In 1948, the "scientific assistants" (the scientific staff) were redesignated "curators" and "assistant curators". In 1983, during a period of reorganisation, the position of curator was renamed as "collection manager".
Collections and programs
20th century
After a run of field collecting activities by the scientific staff in the 1880s and 1890s, field work ceased until after the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. In the 1920s, new expeditions were launched to New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu
Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea).
It is a simplified version of ...
, the Kermadec Islands
The Kermadec Islands ( mi, Rangitāhua) are a subtropical island arc in the South Pacific Ocean northeast of New Zealand's North Island, and a similar distance southwest of Tonga. The islands are part of New Zealand. They are in total ar ...
and Santa Cruz in the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...
, as well as to many parts of Australia, including the Capricorn Islands off the coast of Queensland.[Strahan, 1979.]
During the 19th century, galleries had mainly included large display cases overly filled with specimens and artefacts. During the 1920s museum displays grew to include dioramas showing habitat groups, but otherwise the Museum was largely unchanged during the period beginning with the curatorship of Robert Etheridge Jr (1895–1919), until the appointment of John Evans in 1954, when under his direction, additional buildings were built, several galleries were overhauled, and a new Exhibitions department was created. The size of the education staff was also radically increased. By the end of the 1950s, all of the galleries had been completely overhauled.
The museum's growth in the field of scientific research
The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientific m ...
continued with a new department of environmental studies
Environmental studies is a multidisciplinary academic field which systematically studies human interaction with the environment. Environmental studies connects principles from the physical sciences, commerce/economics, the humanities, and social ...
, created in 1968. The museum support society, The Australian Museum Society (TAMS), now known as Museum Members) was formed in 1972, and in 1973 the Lizard Island Research Station (LIRS), was established near Cairns.
The Australian Museum Train, an early outreach project, was officially launched on 8 March 1978. The train was described as "a wonderful new concept of the travelling circus! The only difference is that the travelling Museum Train will bring school children and the people of NSW into contact with the wonders of nature, evolution and Wildlife." The two-carriage train was renovated and refurbished at Eveleigh Carriage Works, and fitted out with exhibits by the Australian Museum at a cost of about $100,000. One carriage displayed the evolution of the earth, animals and man. The second carriage was a lecture and visual display area. The train ceased operations in December 1988 but the museum's outreach work in regional communities continues.
In 1991, the museum established a commercial consulting and project management group, the Australian Museum Business Services (AMBS), now known as Australian Museum Consulting. In 1995, the museum established new research centres in conservation
Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws.
Conservation may also refer to:
Environment and natural resources
* Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...
, biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...
, evolutionary research, geodiversity
Geodiversity is the variety of earth materials, forms and processes that constitute and shape the Earth, either the whole or a specific part of it.Zwolinski, Zb. 2004. ''Geodiversity'', in: ''Encyclopedia of Geomorphology'', A.Goudie (ed.), Routle ...
and "People and Places". These research centres have now been incorporated into the museum's natural science collection programs. In 1998, the djamu gallery opened at Customs House
A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...
, Circular Quay
Circular Quay is a harbour, former working port and now international passenger shipping port, public piazza and tourism precinct, heritage area, and transport node located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on the northern edge of the Syd ...
, the first major new venue for the museum beyond College Street site. A series of exhibitions on Indigenous culture were displayed until the gallery closed at the end of 2000.
21st century
In 2001 two rural associate museums were established, The Age of Fishes Museum in Canowindra
Situated on the Belubula River, Canowindra (pronounced ) is a historic township and largest population centre in Cabonne Shire and is located between Orange and Cowra in the central west of New South Wales, Australia. The curving main street ...
and the Australian Fossil and Mineral Museum in Bathurst which includes the mineral and dinosaur Somerville Collection donated by Warren Somerville.
In 2002, ICAC launched Operation Savoy to investigate thefts of the zoological collections by a museum employee.
In 2011 the museum launched its first Mobile App
A mobile application or app is a computer program or software application designed to run on a mobile device such as a phone, tablet, or watch. Mobile applications often stand in contrast to desktop applications which are designed to run on d ...
– "DangerOZ" – about Australia's most dangerous animals.
In 2012, an exhibition called ''Sydney Elders'' was mounted, and continues to be held by the museum and displayed online. It comprises photographs by renowned Aboriginal photographer Mervyn Bishop
Mervyn Bishop (born July 1945) is an Australian news and documentary photographer. Joining ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' as a cadet in 1962 he was the first Aboriginal Australian to work on a metropolitan daily newspaper and one of the first to b ...
of a selection of local Elders who have "contributed to the important role of culture, education, health, community or social justice". The collection is accompanied by an essay written by Djon Mundine
Djon Mundine (born 1951) is an Aboriginal Australian curator, writer, artist and activist.
Early life
Djon was born in Grafton, New South Wales in 1941. He is one of 11 children born to Roy Mundine and Olive Bridgette Mundine (nee Donovan). ...
, entitled "Growing Old on Eora Country". Elders whose portraits are included in the collection include Christine Donnelly
The Aboriginal Dance Theatre Redfern (ADTR) is an Australian non-profit organisation providing cultural and dance programs for Aboriginal Australian, located in the Sydney suburb of Redfern. It was founded in 1979 by Christine Donnelly, who re ...
, founder of the Aboriginal Dance Theatre Redfern
The Aboriginal Dance Theatre Redfern (ADTR) is an Australian non-profit organisation providing cultural and dance programs for Aboriginal Australian, located in the Sydney suburb of Redfern. It was founded in 1979 by Christine Donnelly, who r ...
; Naomi Mayers
Naomi Mayers (born 1941) is a leader in Australian health. She is also known for having been lead vocalist of the music group The Sapphires, on which a popular 2012 film of the same name was based.
Early life
Mayers was born in 1941, of Yorta ...
, founder of the Aboriginal Health Service; Sol Bellear , member and leader of many Aboriginal organisations; and singer-songwriter Vic Simms; and activists and leaders Dulcie Flower Dulcie is a feminine given name which may refer to:
People
* Dulcie Cooper (1903–1981), Australian actress
* Dulcie Deamer (1890–1972), Australian novelist, poet, journalist and actor
* Dulcie Foo Fat (born 1946), British-born Canadian landsca ...
, Paul Coe
Paul Coe (born 4 February 1949), a Wiradjuri man born at Erambie Mission in Cowra, is an Australian Aboriginal activist. He is known for his advocacy of Aboriginal rights, with involvement in the publicity drive for the 1967 referendum, and the ...
, and Lyall Munro Jnr
Lyall Thomas Munro Jnr (born 1951) is an Aboriginal Australian elder, a former activist and member of many organisations serving Aboriginal Australians. He is known as a local leader in the town of Moree, New South Wales. he is the son of Lyall ...
.
Australian Museum Research Institute
In September 2013, the Australian Museum Research Institute (AMRI) was launched. AMRI's purposes are:
* to provide a focal point for the many researchers working in the museum
* to facilitate collaborations with government research agencies, universities, gardens, zoos and other museums
* to showcase the important scientific research that is being done at the museum, focusing on climate change impacts on biodiversity; the detection and biology of pest species; understanding what constitutes and influences effective biodiversity conservation.
Exhibitions
The museum has hosted exhibitions since 1854 to the present day, including permanent, temporary and touring exhibitions, such as "Dinosaurs from China", "Festival of the Dreaming", "Beauty from Nature: Art of the Scott Sisters" and "Wildlife Photographer of the Year". In 2012–13 the museum hosted "Alexander the Great" which exhibited the largest collection of treasures ever to come to Australia from the Hermitage Museum
The State Hermitage Museum ( rus, Государственный Эрмитаж, r=Gosudarstvennyj Ermitaž, p=ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)ɨj ɪrmʲɪˈtaʂ, links=no) is a museum of art and culture in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It is the list of ...
in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, Russia.
When the Crystal Hall was launched as the museum's new entrance in August 2015, the former foyer, the Barnet Wing, became the permanent gallery housing "Wild Planet" – a display of over 400 animals that explores and explains evolution
Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...
and the tree of life
The tree of life is a fundamental archetype in many of the world's mythological, religious, and philosophical traditions. It is closely related to the concept of the sacred tree.Giovino, Mariana (2007). ''The Assyrian Sacred Tree: A History ...
.
In 2015, "Trailblazers: Australia's 50 greatest explorers" opened, honouring the work of Bourke and Wills, Nancy Bird Walton
Nancy Bird Walton, (16 October 1915 – 13 January 2009) was a pioneering Australian aviator, known as "The Angel of the Outback", and the founder and patron of the Australian Women Pilots' Association.
In the 1930s, she became a fully ...
, Dick Smith, Jessica Watson
Jessica Watson (born 18 May 1993) is an Australian sailor who was awarded the Order of Australia Medal after attempting a solo global circumnavigation at the age of 16. Departing Sydney on 18 October 2009, Watson headed north-east, crossing the ...
and Tim Jarvis
Tim Jarvis AM (born May 1966) is a British-Australian environmental explorer, adventurer, climber, author and documentary filmmaker, with Masters qualifications in environmental science and environmental law. Due to his 2013 expedition recreatin ...
, among others.
Other audience engagement programs include live displays to help demonstrate the behaviours and adaptations of animals, video conferencing and "Museum in a Box" for schoolchildren, as well as cultural heritage initiatives for Pacific youth and Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
.
Jurassic Lounge
Established in early 2011 by the Australian Museum and non-profit company The Festivalists, Jurassic Lounge displays contemporary art
Contemporary art is the art of today, produced in the second half of the 20th century or in the 21st century. Contemporary artists work in a globally influenced, culturally diverse, and technologically advancing world. Their art is a dynamic com ...
.
Combining events, live music, art, cultural displays, and new media with standard exhibition space in the museum precinct, Jurassic Lounge is a seasonal display-event held on Tuesdays for two seasons annually. Jurassic lounge first opened on 1 February 2011. It is held from 5.30pm to 9.30pm at the Australian Museum which is located on 6 College Street Sydney, Australia
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...
. It allows the public to discover Sydney's hottest new emerging artists, musicians and performers. Last year's line ups included a burlesque
A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects. show, a silent disco, live painting, a photobooth, interaction with museum animals (snake and stick insects).
Heritage listing
As at 14 November 2014, the Australian Museum buildings house the first public museum inaugurated in Australia, one of Australia's oldest scientific and cultural institutions. Conceived and developed initially along the contemporary European model of an encyclopedic warehouse of cultural and natural history, the museum buildings evolved as the institution evolved, partly in response to its visiting public, to pursue and expand knowledge of the natural history of Australia and the nearby pacific region. The museum continues to occupy the site provided, and the building constructed, as its first permanent home, commenced in 1846 and opened to the public in 1857. The extended and enlarged complex of buildings which now provide its principal exhibition, administrative and research accommodation reflect the growth of the institution and its prestige, as well as the evolving attitudes of Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government ...
and society to science and research.
The Museum's various buildings further comprise a unique aggregation of work by successive colonial and Government Architects of New South Wales, exhibiting:
* changes in the philosophy and functional requirements of museum design
* changing stylistic influences and design approaches in architecture from the early 19th century to the present, and
* corresponding developments in building technology, materials and craftsmanship.[
Individually the various elements of the Museum complex remain significantly intact, with potential for enhancement of their cultural significance through conservation techniques, though conflicts exist between conservation of fabric and contemporary use, particularly exhibition techniques. Of special note are the exteriors and principal interiors of the three earliest wings of the complex, which despite varying degrees of alteration, remain in substantial original condition. The interlinked exhibition galleries comprise an important group of 19th and early 20th century public interests.][
Through its development, the Museum complex has assumed a prominent stature in the townscape of Sydney. With its frontage to William and College Street, the Museum commands the eastern reaches of Hyde Park and forms and extension of the principal historic civic and religious precincts adjoining the northern boundaries of the park in Macquarie and College streets. Through recent expansion the museum site includes the former grounds and two surviving buildings of the William Street National School, which, established in 1851, is one of the earlier public schools continued in educational use for almost 100 years.][
Australian Museum was listed on the ]New South Wales State Heritage Register
The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...
on 2 April 1999.[
]
2020 Upgrade
At the end of 2020, after being closed for 15 months, the 200 year old Museum re-opened following a major upgrade. Subsequent to its refurbishment, Museum entry will be free for the public and the building will provide a physical space that "equals the importance of the collection and the scientific research" done there.
Gallery
Image:Butterflies1.JPG, Butterflies in a display case
Image:Horse and Man.jpg, Human and Horse Skeletons displayed in a lifelike pose (2007)
Image:African Art Display.jpg, A display of African metalwork art, 2007
Image:Australian Birds.jpg, A display case of some stuffed Australian bird specimens, 2007
Image:Snake Skeletons.jpg, Display on the skeletal structure of snakes and other reptiles (2007)
File:Aboriginal art owls.jpg, Modern Aboriginal art on show at the Museum in 2007
Image:1_Australian_Museum.JPG, Museum at night
See also
* "The New Museum Idea"
* The Lewis Collection
* List of museums in Australia
*National Museum of Australia
The National Museum of Australia, in the national capital Canberra, preserves and interprets Australia's social history, exploring the key issues, people and events that have shaped the nation. It was formally established by the ''National Muse ...
*Museum of Sydney
The Museum of Sydney is a historical collection and exhibit, built on the ruins of the house of New South Wales' first Governor, Arthur Phillip, on the present-day corner of Phillip and Bridge Street, Sydney.
Description
The original house, ...
References
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
Attribution
External links
*
Australian Museum – Sydney.com
Australian Museum at Google Cultural Institute
* Creative Commons license">CC-By-SA
A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted "work".A "work" is any creative material made by a person. A painting, a graphic, a book, a song/lyrics ...
]
{{authority control
Museums in Sydney
Natural history museums in Australia
Neoclassical architecture in Australia
James Barnet buildings in Sydney
New South Wales State Heritage Register sites located in the Sydney central business district
Mortimer Lewis buildings
1827 establishments in Australia
Articles incorporating text from the New South Wales State Heritage Register
Sandstone buildings in Australia
College Street, Sydney