The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

national museum A national museum is a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In other countries a much greater numb ...

and is located in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring from mother Earth here in New Zealand". Usually known as Te Papa (

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

for "

the treasure box ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

"), it opened in 1998 after the merging of the National Museum of New Zealand and the National Art Gallery. An average of more than 1.5 million people visit every year, making it the 17th-most-visited art gallery in the world. Te Papa's philosophy emphasises the living face behind its cultural treasures, many of which retain deep ancestral links to the indigenous

Māori people The Māori (, ) are the indigenous Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand (). Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages between roughly 1320 and 1350. Over several ce ...

History

Massey University - former Dominion Museum

Colonial Museum

The first predecessor to Te Papa was the ''Colonial Museum'', founded in 1865, with

Sir James Hector Sir James Hector (16 March 1834 – 6 November 1907) was a Scottish-New Zealand geologist, naturalist, and surgeon who accompanied the Palliser Expedition as a surgeon and geologist. He went on to have a lengthy career as a government employe ...

as founding director. The Museum was built on Museum Street, roughly in the location of the present day Defence House Office Building. The museum prioritised scientific collections but also acquired a range of other items, often by donation, including prints and paintings, ethnographic curiosities, and items of antiquity. In 1907, the Colonial Museum was renamed the

Dominion Museum The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring fr ...

and took on a broader focus. The idea of developing a public art gallery in Wellington was gathering support, and the Science and Art Act of 1913 paved the way for a national art gallery in the same building.

Co-location with National Art Gallery

Following the passing of the ''National Art Gallery and Dominion Museum Act'' in 1930, the two institutions shared a single board of trustees. In 1934, the National Art Gallery moved into the Dominion Museum building and incorporated the

New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts The New Zealand Academy of Fine Arts (also referred to as the Wellington Art Society) was founded in Wellington in July 1882 as The Fine Arts Association of New Zealand. Founding artists included painters William Beetham (first president of the Ass ...

, which sold its land and donated the proceeds to the new organisation together with an initial collection. The early holding consisted largely of donations and bequests, including those from

Harold Beauchamp Sir Harold Beauchamp (15 November 1858 – 5 October 1938) was a New Zealand businessman and later two times chairman of the Bank of New Zealand. He is remembered as the father of author Katherine Mansfield. Australian by birth he was brought ...

T. Lindsay Buick Thomas Lindsay Buick (13 May 1865 – 22 February 1938) was a New Zealand Liberal Party, Liberal Member of parliament, Member of Parliament for Wairau, New Zealand, a journalist and a historian. He published under the name T. Lindsay Buick. E ...

, Archdeacon Smythe,

N. Chevalier Nicholas Chevalier (9 May 1828 – 15 March 1902) was a Russian-born artist who worked in Australia and New Zealand. Early life Chevalier was born in St Petersburg, Russia, the son of Louis Chevalier, who came from Vaud, Switzerland, and was o ...

, J. C. Richmond, William Swainson,

Bishop Monrad Ditlev Gothard Monrad (24 November 1811 – 28 March 1887) was a Danish politician and bishop, and a founding father of Danish constitutional democracy; he also led the country as Council President in its huge defeat during the Second Schlesw ...

John Ilott John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

and

Rex Nan Kivell Sir Rex de Charembac Nan Kivell CMG (born Reginald Nankivell, 8 April 18987 June 1977) was a New Zealand-born British art collector, who was knighted on the recommendation of the government of Australia, a country he never visited, for the gift ...

. In 1936, a new building to house both the collections opened in Buckle Street as a part of the newly built National War Memorial. Eru D. Gore was secretary-manager from 1936 until his death in 1948 when

Stewart Maclennan Stewart Bell Maclennan (14 May 1903 – 6 July 1973) was a New Zealand artist and was a director of the National Art Gallery of New Zealand. Maclennan was born in Dunedin on 14 May 1903. He received his art training at the Dunedin School o ...

was appointed the first director. This was the first appointment in New Zealand of a full-time art gallery director. Other past directors of the gallery include: *

(1948–68) *

Melvin Day Melvin Norman "Pat" Day (30 June 1923 – 17 January 2016) was a New Zealand artist and art historian. Biography Day was born in Hamilton, New Zealand. At the age of eleven, Day began Saturday morning classes at Elam School of Art, University o ...

(1968–78) *

Luit Bieringa Luit Bieringa (1942–2022) was a New Zealand art historian, art gallery director and documentary film maker. Bieringa was born in Groningen in the Netherlands and emigrated to New Zealand with his family in 1956. Museum career He was Direct ...

(1979–89) *

Jenny Harper Jenny Gwynndd Harper (born 27 April 1950) is a New Zealand academic and museum professional. She was most recently the director of Christchurch Art Gallery. Early life and education Born in Geraldine on 27 April 1950, Harper was educated at ...

(1990–92)

Te Papa

Te Papa was established in 1992 by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa Act 1992. Part of the remit for Te Papa was to explore the national identity of New Zealand. The official opening took place on 14 February 1998, in a ceremony led by

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Jenny Shipley Dame Jennifer Mary Shipley (née Robson; born 4 February 1952) is a New Zealand former politician who served as the 36th prime minister of New Zealand from 1997 to 1999. She was the first female prime minister of New Zealand, and the first woma ...

, Sir Peter Blake, and two children. Māori traditional instrumentalist

Richard Nunns Richard Anthony Nunns (7 December 1945 – 7 June 2021) was a Māori traditional instrumentalist of Pākehā heritage. He was particularly known for playing taonga pūoro and his collaboration with fellow Māori instrumentalist Hirini Melbourn ...

co-led the musicians at a dawn ceremony on opening day. The museum had one million visitors in the first five months of operation, and between 1 and 1.3 million visits have been made in each subsequent year. In 2004, more space was devoted to exhibiting works from the New Zealand art collection in a long-term exhibition called ''Toi Te Papa: Art of the Nation''. Filmmakers

Gaylene Preston Dame Gaylene Mary Preston (born 1 June 1947) is a New Zealand filmmaker with a particular interest in documentary films. Early life and family Born in Greymouth on 1 June 1947, Preston was educated at Colenso High School (now William Colenso Co ...

and Anna Cottrell documented the development of Te Papa in their film ''Getting to Our Place''.

Current building

The main Te Papa building is built on former

Wellington Harbour Board (Strong but true) , predecessor = , merged = , successor = , formation = , founder = , founding_location = , dissolved = , merger = , type ...

land, on the waterfront in Wellington, on Cable Street. The site was previously occupied by a modern five-storey hotel. This was jacked off its foundations onto numerous rail

bogies A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...

and transported down and across the road to a new site, where it is now the Museum Hotel. Te Papa was designed by Jasmax Architects and built by

Fletcher Construction The Fletcher Construction Company Limited is a New Zealand construction company and a subsidiary of Fletcher Building. Together with Higgins Contractors Ltd it makes up the Construction division of Fletcher Building. Fletcher Construction is wid ...

. The building had cost

NZ$ The New Zealand dollar ( mi, tāra o Aotearoa; sign: $, NZ$; code: NZD) is the official currency and legal tender of New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Niue, the Ross Dependency, Tokelau, and a British territory, the Pitcairn Islands. Within New Zea ...

300 million by its opening in 1998. Earthquake strengthening of the Cable Street building was achieved through the New Zealand-developed technology of

base isolation Seismic base isolation, also known as base isolation, or base isolation system, is one of the most popular means of protecting a structure against earthquake forces. It is a collection of structural elements which should substantially decoup ...

. The building contains six floors of exhibitions, cafés and gift shops dedicated to

New Zealand's culture The culture of New Zealand is a synthesis of home-grown and imported cultures. The country's earliest inhabitants brought with them customs and language from Polynesia, and during the centuries of isolation, developed their own Māori culture, ...

, history and environment. The museum also incorporates outdoor areas with artificial caves, native bushes and wetlands. A second building on Tory Street is a scientific research facility and storage area, and is not open to the public. The design process of the building followed bicultural principles based on the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the M ...

. This process was led by

Cliff Whiting Clifford Hamilton Whiting (6 May 1936 – 16 July 2017) was a New Zealand artist, teacher and advocate for Māori heritage. Career In 1955, Whiting began teacher training at Wellington Teachers' College where his artistic talents were quickly ...

working alongside

Cheryll Sotheran Dame Cheryll Beatrice Sotheran (11 October 1945 – 30 December 2017) was a New Zealand museum professional. She was the founding chief executive of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and was credited with the successful completion of ...

and

Ken Gorbey Kenneth Coulton Gorbey (born 1942) is a New Zealand museum director and consultant. He has designed and created exhibitions at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and the Jewish Museum Berlin. Early life Gorbey was born in 1942 and g ...

Governance and Leadership

The museum is run by a board appointed by the

Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage The Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage is a minister in the government of New Zealand with responsibility for arts, culture, heritage, and broadcasting, and is in charge of the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. The position was establish ...

. Board members have included:

Wira Gardiner Sir Harawira Tiri Gardiner (4 September 1943 – 17 March 2022) was a New Zealand soldier, public servant, and writer. He was Māori, of Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Pikiao, Whakatōhea, and Te Whānau-ā-Apanui descent. Early life and personal Gardine ...

, Fiona Campbell,

Sue Piper Susan Margaret Piper (born 1951) is a retired New Zealand trade unionist and local politician. Biography Piper was born in Wellington in 1951. Her parents were Leon Bremmer "Pip" Piper and Margaret Neilson "Tilly" Hunter, both were trade unioni ...

Judith Tizard Judith Ngaire Tizard (born 3 January 1956) is a former New Zealand politician, and a member of the Labour Party. Early life and career Tizard was born at Auckland's St Helen's maternity hospital in Pitt Street in 1956. She was educated at Glen ...

, John Judge, Miria Pomare,

Michael Bassett Michael Edward Rainton Bassett (born 28 August 1938) is a former New Zealand Labour Party, Labour Party member of the New Zealand House of Representatives and cabinet minister in the reformist Fourth Labour Government of New Zealand, fourth L ...

, Christopher Parkin, Sandra Lee,

Ngātata Love Sir Ralph Heberley Love (7 September 1937 – 17 October 2018), known as Ngātata Love, was a New Zealand Waitangi Tribunal negotiator, academic and Māori people, Māori leader. Love was a Professor Emeritus of Business Development at Victori ...

Ron Trotter Sir Ronald Ramsay Trotter (9 October 1927 – 11 August 2010) was one of New Zealand's pre-eminent business leaders. He was knighted for his service to business in 1985. Early life and family Born in Hāwera on 9 October 1927, Trotter was the s ...

, Glenys Coughlan,

Judith Binney Dame Judith Mary Caroline Binney (née Musgrove, 1 July 1940 – 15 February 2011) was a New Zealand historian, writer and Emerita Professor of History at the University of Auckland. Her work focussed on religion in New Zealand, especially ...

, Philip Carter, Wendy Lai and Api Mahuika. CEOs of Te Papa include: *

(1992–2002) *

(1995–?) – joint CEO or kaihautū *

Seddon Bennington Seddon Leonard Bennington (8 October 1947 – c. 11 July 2009) was a New Zealand museum executive (management), executive. Bennington was the chief executive of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, the national museum of New Zealand, from ...

(2003 – July 2009) * Michael Houlihan (Aug 2010 – May 2014) * Rick Ellis (Nov 2014 – May 2017) *

Geraint Martin Geraint () is a character from Welsh folklore and Arthurian legend, a valiant warrior possibly related to the historical Geraint, an early 8th-century king of Dumnonia. It is also the name of a 6th-century Dumnonian saint king from Briton hagi ...

(May 2017 – 2019) *

Courtney Johnston Courtney Johnston (born ) is a New Zealand museum professional, a national radio correspondent, and the chief executive of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. Early life and education Born in about 1979, Johnston grew up on dairy farm ...

(2019–present)

Collections

The History Collection includes many dresses and textiles, the oldest of which date back to the sixteenth century. The History Collection also includes the New Zealand Post Archive with around 20,000 stamps and related objects, and the Pacific Collection with about 13,000 historic and contemporary items from the

Pacific Islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...

. There are significant collections of

fossils A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved in ...

and

archaeozoology Zooarchaeology (sometimes called archaeozoology), also known as faunal analysis, is a branch of archaeology that studies remains of animals from archaeological sites. Faunal remains are the items left behind when an animal dies. These include bon ...

; a

herbarium A herbarium (plural: herbaria) is a collection of preserved plant specimens and associated data used for scientific study. The specimens may be whole plants or plant parts; these will usually be in dried form mounted on a sheet of paper (called ...

of about 250,000 dried specimens (''

Index Herbariorum The Index Herbariorum provides a global directory of herbaria and their associated staff. This searchable online index allows scientists rapid access to data related to 3,400 locations where a total of 350 million botanical Biological specim ...

'' code WELT); a collection of about 70,000 specimen of New Zealand birds; significant

amphibians Amphibians are four-limbed and ectothermic vertebrates of the class Amphibia. All living amphibians belong to the group Lissamphibia. They inhabit a wide variety of habitats, with most species living within terrestrial, fossorial, arbore ...

reptiles Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the Class (biology), class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsid, sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, Squamata, squamates (lizar ...

and

mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...

s. The museum has the world's largest specimen of the rare

colossal squid The colossal squid (''Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni'') is part of the family Cranchiidae. It is sometimes called the Antarctic squid or giant cranch squid and is believed to be the largest squid species in terms of mass. It is the only recognize ...

(''Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni''). It weighs and is long. The squid arrived at the museum in March 2007 after being captured by New Zealand fisherman in the

Ross Sea The Ross Sea is a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica, between Victoria Land and Marie Byrd Land and within the Ross Embayment, and is the southernmost sea on Earth. It derives its name from the British explorer James Clark Ross who vi ...

off Antarctica. The cultural collections include collections on photography, Māori

taonga ''Taonga'' or ''taoka'' (in South Island Māori) is a Maori-language word that refers to a treasured possession in Māori culture. It lacks a direct translation into English, making its use in the Treaty of Waitangi significant. The current d ...

(cultural treasures), and Pacific cultures. The Museum of New Zealand is also home to the

Elgar Collection Fernside is a generous and luxurious five-bedroom white-weatherboard slate-roofed American Colonial Revival style house with an L-shape plan. It covers approximately 9,000 square feet or less than 1,000 square metres. There are three further bedro ...

a valuable collection of English and French furniture and paintings the oldest of which date back to the seventeenth century. In 1946 the

one of Te Papa's predecessors received a bequest of some Fernside Homestead’s finest antiques from

Ella Elgar Ella Grace Elgar ( Pharazyn, 1869–1945) was a New Zealand socialite and art collector. Biography Ella Grace Pharazyn was born in 1869 into the Wairarapa's wealthiest colonial family, The patriarch of the family, Ella Pharazyn's grandfather, wa ...

’s will. Until 1992 these antiques were displayed in period rooms at the Museum but today objects from the Elgar Collection can be seen in many exhibitions at the museum.

Exhibitions

Te Papa has a mixture of long term exhibitions of cultural objects, hands-on and interactive exhibitions, cultural spaces and touring exhibitions. The long term exhibitions of cultural objects focus on

New Zealand history The history of New Zealand ( Aotearoa) dates back to between 1320 and 1350 CE, when the main settlement period started, after it was discovered and settled by Polynesians, who developed a distinct Māori culture. Like other Pacific cultures, M� ...

Māori culture Māori culture () is the customs, cultural practices, and beliefs of the indigenous Māori people of New Zealand. It originated from, and is still part of, Polynesians, Eastern Polynesian culture. Māori culture forms a distinctive part of Cul ...

and New Zealand's natural world. The hands-on and interactive exhibitions focus on engaging particularly young visitors and include both indoor areas and out-door areas built and planted for the purpose. The key cultural space is the ''Te Hono ki Hawaiki''

marae A ' (in New Zealand Māori, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian), ' (in Tongan), ' (in Marquesan) or ' (in Samoan) is a communal or sacred place that serves religious and social purposes in Polynesian societies. In all these languages, the term a ...

with very impressive

whakairo Toi whakairo (art carving) or just whakairo (carving) is a Māori traditional art of carving in wood, stone or bone. History Timber was formed into houses, fencepoles, pouwhenua, containers, taiaha, tool handles and waka (boats). Carving to ...

. All permanent exhibitions are free. Many of the touring exhibition are ticketed, but there are occasional free days. In 2018, the ''Mountains to Sea'' and ''Awesome Forces'' exhibits were closed, with Te Taiao Nature taking their place. This new exhibit opened on 11 May 2019, with a 1,400 square-metre exhibition focussing on New Zealand's natural environment. The exhibition retains several features of the old exhibits, such as an earthquake simulation and a 495 kilogram (1,091 lb)

Colossal squid The colossal squid (''Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni'') is part of the family Cranchiidae. It is sometimes called the Antarctic squid or giant cranch squid and is believed to be the largest squid species in terms of mass. It is the only recognize ...

. A full list of exhibitions can be foun
here

Library

Te Aka Matua Library, previously a publicly accessible library, is now open only to researchers by appointment between 10am-5pm, Monday-Friday. The library is a major research and reference resource, with particular strengths in New Zealand, Māori, natural history, art, photography and museum studies. It is located on the fourth floor of the main building.

Mahuki Innovation Accelerator

Mahuki is Te Papa's innovation accelerator. It is an in-residence programme in which 10 teams develop solutions to challenges facing cultural institutions.

Controversies

The museum has sometimes been the centre of controversy. The siting of significant collections at the water's edge on reclaimed land next to one of the world's most

active fault An active fault is a fault that is likely to become the source of another earthquake sometime in the future. Geologists commonly consider faults to be active if there has been movement observed or evidence of seismic activity during the last 10,0 ...

s has resulted in concern by some people. There has been criticism of the "sideshow" nature of some exhibits, primarily the Time Warp section, which has closed. There has also been criticism that some exhibits were not given due reverence. For example, a major work by

Colin McCahon Colin John McCahon (; 1August 191927May 1987) was a prominent New Zealand artist whose work over 45 years consisted of various styles, including landscape, figuration, abstraction, and the overlay of painted text. Along with Toss Woollaston and ...

was at one stage juxtaposed with a 1950s refrigerator in a New Zealand culture exhibition. The Maori name of the museum has caused controversy. In 1989 the Maori

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

Te Āti Awa Te Āti Awa is a Māori iwi with traditional bases in the Taranaki and Wellington regions of New Zealand. Approximately 17,000 people registered their affiliation to Te Āti Awa in 2001, with around 10,000 in Taranaki, 2,000 in Wellington and arou ...

, located near Wellington, requested that the

Ngāti Whakaue Ngāti Whakaue is a Māori iwi, of the Te Arawa confederation of New Zealand. The tribe lives in the Rotorua district and descends from the Arawa waka. The Ngāti Whakaue village Ōhinemutu is within the township of Rotorua. Ngāti Whakaue tra ...

iwi grant a name to the museum, which resulted in the

bestowing the name ''Kuru Tongarerewa'', an ancient ceremonial name important to the iwi evoking spiritual, historical, and cultural importance. However, the name eventually adopted by the museum caused offense by being a modification in the form of ''Te Papa Tongerewa''. Meetings between the museum's board and the

led to promises that the name would be changed to ''Te Papa Kuru Tongererewa'', however the change did not occur. New Zealand art commentator

Hamish Keith Hamish Henry Cordy Keith (born 15 August 1936) is a New Zealand writer, art curator, arts consultant and social commentator. Introduction Keith has been writing about and working with the arts in New Zealand for almost half a century. He has ...

has been a consistent critic of Te Papa at different times referring to it as a "theme park", the "cultural equivalent to a fast-food outlet" and "not even a de facto national gallery", but seemed to moderate his opinion later when making a case for exhibition space on the

Auckland waterfront The Auckland waterfront (rarely the Auckland harbourfront) is a city-side stretch of the southern Waitematā Harbour coastline in Auckland, New Zealand. Previously mostly dominated by Ports of Auckland uses, from the 2000s on it is becoming i ...

. Staff restructuring at Te Papa since 2012 has generated significant controversy. In October 2018, Te Papa management promised to review restructuring plans, indicating that plans would be scaled back. In February 2019, the Collection Manager of Fishes Andrew Stewart and the Collection Manager of Molluscs

Bruce Marshall Lieutenant-Colonel Claude Cunningham Bruce Marshall, known as Bruce Marshall (24 June 1899 – 18 June 1987) was a prolific Scottish writer who wrote fiction and non-fiction books on a wide range of topics and genres. His first book, ''A Thief ...

were made redundant. Numerous museum experts and scientists in New Zealand and worldwide criticised the move, with researchers including

Steve O'Shea Steve O'Shea (born 14 December 1965 in Auckland, New Zealand) is a marine biologist and environmentalist known for his research on giant squid. O'Shea obtained his degrees from Auckland university. He undertook a Bachelor of Science between 1984 ...

advocating a boycott. In March 2019, the redundancies were delayed. In April 2019, the Museum reversed the decision for Andrew Stewart, offering him an alternative job. Between April and May 2019, Te Papa advertised a research position for a molluscan curator and awarded the job to an alternative candidate to Bruce Marshall. The advertisement and decision to not offer the job to Bruce Marshall was criticised harshly by outside experts, prompting moa expert

Trevor Worthy Trevor Henry Worthy (born 3 January 1957) is an Australia-based paleozoologist from New Zealand, known for his research on moa and other extinct vertebrates. Biography Worthy grew up in Broadwood, Northland, and went to Whangarei Boys' High S ...

to end his 30-year research association with the museum in protest. On 23 June 2021, Te Papa Museum closed for two days for deep cleaning after an Australian tourist who visited the museum and its ''Surrealist Arts Masterpieces'' exhibit on 19 June tested positive for the

SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant The Delta variant (B.1.617.2) was a variant of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. It was first detected in India in late 2020. The Delta variant was named on 31 May 2021 and had spread to over 179 countries by 22 November 2021. The ...

. In addition, 2,500 people who visited the museum around the same time were asked to go into self-isolation for between five and 14 days, depending on the part of the Museum they were visiting.

Virgin Mary artwork controversy

British artist

Tania Kovats Tania Kovats (born 1966) is an English visual artist, best known for her sculpture, installation art and drawing. A key theme of Kovats' work is how art can communicate our relationship with nature and she is an advocate for the importance of d ...

’ exhibition, Pictura Britannica, depicting the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

in a

condom A condom is a sheath-shaped barrier device used during sexual intercourse to reduce the probability of pregnancy or a sexually transmitted infection (STI). There are both male and female condoms. With proper use—and use at every act of in ...

, infuriated many in the

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

community and sparked protests and counter protests a month after Te Papa opened its doors in 1998. A nationwide petition was circulated calling for the work's removal. Protesters congregated on the forecourt outside, increasing in number after The Christian Action group took out a full-page advertisement in '' The Dominion'' newspaper inviting people to join their protest. They threatened to take Te Papa to court on the grounds of "blasphemous libel", a 1961 Crimes Act offence against "religion, morality and public welfare". Te Papa staff also became the target of abusive and threatening phone calls and letters. The exhibit was guarded after being physically attacked, and following that, a guard working at the site was assaulted. Te Papa responded by refusing to remove the offending artwork. The museum welcomed protestors back, stating that the museum's aim was not to offend, but to stimulate debate as a forum. However, they stipulated that debate would not concern the removal of the artwork, but only its meanings and interpretation, claiming that, "the people of New Zealand would want the museum to take a strong position on this, not to succumb to intimidation as some other museums have". The move sought to align Te Papa with other art museums that have taken the side of artistic freedom in spite of well publicised protest (the statuette was banned in Adelaide, stolen in Sydney, and dropped from its British tour). Though ostensibly positioning itself as neutral space for debate, Te Papa's stand was nonetheless political. It communicated the institution's liberal credentials that associate secularism with institutional progressiveness. The leader of the Christian Heritage Party claimed that the sacrilegious display of the statuette was hypocritical, given that the museum is careful not to offend sensitivities about Maori spirituality.

Behind the scenes tour advice for women

Advice for pregnant and menstruating women to avoid a behind-the-scenes tour of some of Te Papa's collections in 2010 had some questioning if this was appropriate inclusiveness for a national museum. A Te Papa spokeswoman at the time said the policy was in place because of Māori beliefs surrounding the

collection included in the tour "for their own safety". This generated outrage, with claims that Te Papa was overbearing in terms of political correctness.

William Strutt painting dispute

Taranaki tribal elders raised objections to a 19th-century Te Papa-owned painting that the museum planned to lend to the

Govett-Brewster Art Gallery The Govett-Brewster Art Gallery is a contemporary art museum at New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand. The gallery receives core funding from the New Plymouth District Council. Govett-Brewster is recognised internationally for contemporary art. H ...

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

in 2019. Te Papa said it hoped the piece, ''View of Mt Egmont, Taranaki, New Zealand, taken from New Plymouth, with Maoris driving off settlers' cattle'', painted by William Strutt, would spark a conversation about historical perspectives.

Te Taiao water quality falsification

In 2019, the museum faced criticism from farmers, and National Party MP

Todd Muller Todd Michael Muller (; born 23 December 1968) is a New Zealand politician who served as the Leader of the New Zealand National Party and the Leader of the Opposition from 22 May to 14 July 2020. Muller entered Parliament at the 2014 general el ...

over a container of brown dyed water which was part of a display in the museum's Te Taiao Nature exhibition. This water was labelled as "water from a typical farm stream" with an image of a cow defecating in a waterway, and was classed as undrinkable. Te Papa spokeswoman Kate Camp also told Stuff that the bottles had been created for display purposes only and were not samples. Camp stated that, "this display is about telling the story of New Zealand waterways. It's based on robust research that shows that many waterways in New Zealand—in urban and rural areas—aren't fit to drink or to swim in."

Exposure of adult content to children

In 2020, several children were exposed to mature content without sufficient warning messages. Te Papa head of art Charlotte Davy said the museum would be making warning signs more obvious and installing new ones.

References

External links

*
Collections onlineTe Papa
within

Google Arts & Culture Google Arts & Culture (formerly Google Art Project) is an online platform of high-resolution images and videos of artworks and cultural artifacts from partner cultural organizations throughout the world. It utilizes high-resolution image technol ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Papa, Te 1992 establishments in New Zealand 1990s architecture in New Zealand Art museums and galleries in New Zealand Ethnographic museums in Australasia Museums established in 1992 Museums in Wellington City National museums of New Zealand Natural history museums in New Zealand New Zealand autonomous Crown entities Wellington Central, Wellington