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The Western Australian Museum is a
statutory authority A statutory body or statutory authority is a body set up by law (statute) that is authorised to implement certain legislation on behalf of the relevant country or state, sometimes by being Primary and secondary legislation, empowered or deleg ...
within the Culture and the Arts Portfolio, established under the ''Museum Act 1969''. The museum has six main sites. The state museum, now known as WA Museum Boola Bardip, officially re-opened on 21 November 2020 in the
Perth Cultural Centre The Perth Cultural Centre is an area of central Perth, Western Australia, near the James Street Mall. It is home to a number of cultural institutions including the Art Gallery of Western Australia, Western Australian Museum, State Library o ...
. The other sites are: the WA Maritime Museum and WA Shipwrecks Museum in
Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...
, the Museum of the Great Southern in Albany, the Museum of Geraldton in
Geraldton Geraldton ( Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...
, and the Museum of the Goldfields in
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Kalgoorlie is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is sometimes referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder, as the surrounding urban area include ...
.


History

Established in 1891 in the Old Perth Gaol, it was known as the Geological Museum and consisted of geological collections. In 1892, ethnological and biological exhibits were added, and in 1897, the museum officially became the Western Australian Museum and Art Gallery. The museum employed collectors to obtain series of specimens; Tunney ventured across the state from 1895 to 1909 obtaining animals and, later, the tools and artefacts of the indigenous inhabitants. During 1959, the botanical collection was transferred to the new
Western Australian Herbarium The Western Australian Herbarium is the State Herbarium in Perth, Western Australia. It is part of the State government's Department of Parks and Wildlife, and has responsibility for the description and documentation of the flora of Western Austr ...
and the museum and the art gallery became separate institutions. The museum focussed its collecting and research interests in the areas of
natural science Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...
s,
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 ...
,
archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
, and Western Australia's history. Over the 1960s and 1970s, it also began to work in the then-emerging areas of historic
shipwrecks A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. Shipwrecking may be intentional or unintentional. Angela Croome reported in January 1999 that there were approximately ...
and Aboriginal site management. In February 2008, the
Government of Western Australia The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of Western Australia. It is also commonly referred to as the WA Government o ...
announced that it would build a new museum at the
East Perth Power Station The East Perth Power Station is a disused power station in East Perth, Western Australia. For most of its life it was coal-fired, but ran on oil for six years. The site consists of a complex of industrial buildings occupying more than , bounded ...
site.
Government of Western Australia The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of Western Australia. It is also commonly referred to as the WA Government o ...

Media Release: 'New major sports stadium for Western Australia'
8 February 2008
However, following the election of a new State
Liberal party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...
government under
Colin Barnett Colin James Barnett (born 15 July 1950) is a former Australian politician who was the 29th Premier of Western Australia. He concurrently served as the state's Treasurer at several points during his tenure and had previously held various other po ...
, the redevelopment plans were scrapped in early February 2009.Sports stadium and museum plans scrapped
''
Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
'' 2 February 2009
On Museums day in 2012, the Barnett State Government pledged to build a new museum at the Perth Cultural Centre at a cost of $428 million, for completion by 2019–20. The Western Australian Museum – Perth site closed temporarily from 18 June 2016 until 2020 to construct the New Museum for WA, designed by OMA and
Hassell Hassell is a multidisciplinary architecture, design and urban planning practice with offices in Australia, China, Singapore, and the United Kingdom. Founded in 1937/8 in Adelaide, South Australia, the firm's former names include Claridge, Hassel ...
. In late 2014, critical improvements to the Museum's Collection and Research Centre (CRC) in
Welshpool Welshpool ( cy, Y Trallwng) is a market town and community in Powys, Wales, historically in the county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn; its Welsh language name ''Y Trallwng'' m ...
commenced. This site continues to house the Museum's research laboratories and working collections throughout the construction phase. The upgrades to the CRC include new collection storage, laboratories, and workshops to support ongoing research and to ensure that collections can be adequately prepared and conserved.


Locations

The Western Museum has six museum branches and four collection facilities. The museum also offers outreach services to all areas of Western Australia.


Perth

On 9 September 1891, the Geological Museum was opened at the site of the Old Gaol and housed the state's first collection of geological samples. The Old Gaol still forms a significant part of the Western Australian Museum – Perth and is one of the oldest standing buildings in Western Australia. Shortly after the Geological Museum was opened, collections were expanded to include geological, ethnological and biological specimens and in 1897, the Western Australian Museum and Art Gallery was declared. From 1971 to 2003, a greater part of the research and display collections were housed in a large building on Francis Street. This site was closed due to concerns with
asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...
, and demolition concluded in late 2011. Throughout the Western Australian Museum's history the prominent James Street location remained central to the museum's identity and the location of many large permanent and touring exhibits. Exhibitions on fashion, natural history, cultural heritage and history have attracted large numbers of visitors, including ''A Day in Pompeii'' (25 May – 12 September 2010) which attracted more than 100,000 people. Perth Museum closed for major redevelopment in June 2016, and re-opened in November 2020. Permanent exhibitions which were on display at the Western Australian Museum in Perth included: * ''WA Land and People'': This exhibition tells the story of Western Australia from prehistoric times of dinosaurs, to indigenous beginnings, and through to environmental issues of the present day. * ''Diamonds to Dinosaurs'': An exhibition exploring 12 billion years of WA's history, featuring specimens such as rocks from the Moon and Mars, pre-solar diamonds and dinosaur skeleton casts. * ''Katta Djinoong'': This exhibition depicts the history and culture of the Aboriginal peoples of Western Australia from past to present. * Dampier Marine Gallery: This exhibit explores the biodiversity of the waters around the
Dampier Archipelago The Dampier Archipelago is a group of 42 islands near the town of Dampier in the Pilbara, Western Australia. The archipelago is also made up of reefs, shoals, channels and straits and is the traditional home of five Aboriginal language group ...
. * Mammal, Bird and Butterfly Galleries: These galleries contain extensive collections of various animals. The Perth site also included the Discovery Centre, designed to help children and adults interact and learn about the museum's collections and research. The Discovery Centre relocated to a Discovery Zone in the
State Library of Western Australia The State Library of Western Australia is a research, education, reference and public lending library located in the Perth Cultural Centre in Perth, Western Australia. It is a portfolio agency of the Western Australia Department of Culture and t ...
, but this closed permanently from 8 December 2019. The new museum, named "WA Museum Boola Bardip", opened in the Perth Cultural Centre on Saturday, 21 November 2020. It features new exhibitions and topics such as the
formation of the Universe The universe is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological description of the development of the universe. Acco ...
, WA's latest inventions, dinosaurs, newly discovered species and local communities. Inside the new complex are five heritage buildings, including the Old Perth Gaol, which dates back to 1855. It is also built around what is believed to be Australia's oldest
grapevine ''Vitis'' (grapevine) is a genus of 79 accepted species of vining plants in the flowering plant family Vitaceae. The genus is made up of species predominantly from the Northern Hemisphere. It is economically important as the source of grapes, ...
, estimated to date from the 1850s or 1860s, and encompasses
Hackett Hall Hackett Hall is a heritage listed building, previously housing part of the State Library of Western Australia. It is now a part of the new WA Museum Boola Bardip complex in the Perth Cultural Centre, in Western Australia. The name of the Hall i ...
, once home to the
State Library of Western Australia The State Library of Western Australia is a research, education, reference and public lending library located in the Perth Cultural Centre in Perth, Western Australia. It is a portfolio agency of the Western Australia Department of Culture and t ...
, now displays the skeleton of a
blue whale The blue whale (''Balaenoptera musculus'') is a marine mammal and a baleen whale. Reaching a maximum confirmed length of and weighing up to , it is the largest animal known to have ever existed. The blue whale's long and slender body can ...
(nicknamed Otto), which was in storage since 2003. The
Jubilee Building The Jubilee Building is part of the Western Australian Museum in Perth, Western Australia. Designed in the Victorian Byzantine style by George Temple-Poole and supervised by his 1895 successor John Harry Grainger, it was opened in 1899. The b ...
has been refurbished, with the terrace and grand entrance reopened.


Maritime and Shipwrecks Museums

The Western Australian Museum has two branches in Fremantle: the WA Maritime Museum and WA Shipwrecks Museum (formerly known as Maritime Gallery and Shipwreck Gallery). The WA Maritime Museum is located on Victoria Quay, and contains galleries with themes such as the
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
, the Swan River, fishing,
maritime Maritime may refer to: Geography * Maritime Alps, a mountain range in the southwestern part of the Alps * Maritime Region, a region in Togo * Maritime Southeast Asia * The Maritimes, the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prin ...
trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct excha ...
and naval defence. One of the museum's highlights is the yacht , which won the
America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...
in 1983. The museum is located in the historically significant Maritime Heritage Precinct, which includes the entrance to Fremantle Inner Harbour and associated installations; Forrest Landing, the remnant of the original limestone bar used by Aboriginal men as a crossing point at the mouth of the Swan River; the migrant Welcome Walls memorial; and the World War II submarine slipway area. Immediately adjacent to the WA Maritime Museum on the WWII slipway is , an ''Oberon'' class submarine that is open for guided tours and commemorates the World War II Fremantle allied submarine base, which was the largest submarine base in the southern hemisphere, with 170 submarines of the British, Dutch and US navies conducting patrols from there. Nearby in Cliff Street, the WA Shipwrecks Museum, housed in the 1850s-era
Commissariat Buildings The Commissariat Buildings are a group of two buildings found at 6 Marine Terrace in the West End of Fremantle, Western Australia, which, with construction having begun in 1852, are one of the first sites built using convict labour in the Swa ...
, is recognised as the foremost
maritime archaeology Maritime archaeology (also known as marine archaeology) is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, s ...
and shipwreck conservation museum in the southern hemisphere. The museum contains a reconstructed hull from , which was wrecked off the coast of Western Australia in 1629, and several other relics and artefacts from ships wrecked along the WA coast. It also houses the horizontal
trunk engine Trunk may refer to: Biology * Trunk (anatomy), synonym for torso * Trunk (botany), a tree's central superstructure * Trunk of corpus callosum, in neuroanatomy * Elephant trunk, the proboscis of an elephant Computing * Trunk (software), in re ...
recovered from the iron steamer , which sank in 1872. This unit, the only known example of the first mass-produced, high speed and high pressure marine engine, can now be turned over by hand. The museum's CEO is also responsible for the historic wrecks off the coast of Western Australia, and many shipwrecks appear in the exhibits. In 1980, the museum also commenced the development of a "Museum-Without-Walls" program via its "wreck trail" or "wreck access" programs at
Rottnest Island Rottnest Island ( nys, Wadjemup), often colloquially referred to as "Rotto", is a island off the coast of Western Australia, located west of Fremantle. A sandy, low-lying island formed on a base of aeolianite limestone, Rottnest is an A-class ...
. These "trails" now appear at many places along the coast. The Maritime Archaeology department primarily researches shipwreck archaeology from the Western Australian coast, including the famous shipwreck. Its staff members are involved in developing artefact management and cataloguing strategies, outreach and wreck-access programs, site-inspection techniques, and studies of diverse maritime sites, such as iron ship archaeology, characterised by its program and underwater aviation archaeology. The department also conducts masters level programs in
maritime archaeology Maritime archaeology (also known as marine archaeology) is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, s ...
in collaboration with
University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...
.


Museum of the Great Southern

Refurbished in July 2010, the Museum of the Great Southern is situated at the site of the first European settlement in Western Australia, in Albany. This Museum explores the region's biodiversity, the stories of the indigenous
Noongar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian peoples who live in the south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton on the west coast to Esperance on the so ...
people and ancient natural environment. The Museum was the original residence of Major
Edmund Lockyer Edmund Lockyer, (21 January 1784 – 10 June 1860) was a British soldier and explorer of Australia. Born in Plymouth, Devon, Lockyer was the son of Thomas Lockyer, a sailmaker, and his wife Ann. Lockyer began his army career as an ensign in ...
, the commanding officer of the settlement group that landed in
Princess Royal Harbour Princess Royal Harbour is a part of King George Sound on the South coast of Western Australia, and harbour to Albany. On its northern shore is the Port of Albany. The name ''Princess Royal'' also appears in Albany in Princess Royal Fortress an ...
on 26 December 1826, and formally proclaimed sovereignty on 21 January 1827 for
King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...
of Great Britain, naming the place King George's Sound settlement (later renamed Frederickstown and then renamed again Albany). Together with the Old Gaol, and the buildings of the Amity heritage precinct (Breaksea Museum) and the non-navigable replica of the brig '' Amity'', they were the subject of investigation by the Commonwealth of Australia and
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
as a convict colonial settlement (not included in the formal nomination).


Museum of the Goldfields

The Museum of the Goldfields in Kalgoorlie explores the history of the Eastern Goldfields, the city's mining heritage and the hardships faced by the early mining and pioneer families.


Museum of Geraldton

The Museum of Geraldton is situated in Western Australia's rapidly growing mid-west region. This Museum explores the region's biodiversity, mining and agricultural history, the stories of the indigenous Yamaji people and the Dutch shipwrecks. The famous 17th century Dutch vessel, , sank in the nearby Abrolhos Islands. This Museum features the portico recovered from this wreck, which has been reconstructed to form the centre of the Museum's shipwreck gallery.


Research departments

The Western Australian Museum has an extensive research program, with museum scientists and curators specialising in the fields of aquatic zoology,
archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
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 ...
, conservation,
earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
and planetary sciences, history, and terrestrial
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 ...
. The museum also has a specialist materials conservation team. The WA Museum Collections and Research Centre (CRC) at 49 Kew Street, Welshpool, houses most of the Museum's collections and research facilities. It houses the following departments (staff and collections): *The Terrestrial Zoology department maintains large collections of a wide variety of terrestrial animals, including both terrestrial invertebrates and vertebrates, as well as marine mammals. The department includes sections that study: subterranean biology, ornithology, mammalogy, entomology, vertebrate biogeography, arachnids and myriapods and herpetology. *The Aquatic Zoology department is responsible for documenting and researching the marine, estuarine and freshwater fauna of Western Australia. The department includes sections that study malacology,
ichthyology Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish ( Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 33,400 species of fish had been described as of Octob ...
, crustacea,
marine invertebrates Marine invertebrates are the invertebrates that live in marine habitats. Invertebrate is a blanket term that includes all animals apart from the vertebrate members of the chordate phylum. Invertebrates lack a vertebral column, and some have ev ...
and
worm Worms are many different distantly related bilateral animals that typically have a long cylindrical tube-like body, no limbs, and no eyes (though not always). Worms vary in size from microscopic to over in length for marine polychaete wor ...
s. *The Earth and Planetary Sciences Department studies and collects in the areas of fossils (invertebrate, vertebrate, plant and trace fossils),
mineral In geology and mineralogy, a mineral or mineral species is, broadly speaking, a solid chemical compound with a fairly well-defined chemical composition and a specific crystal structure that occurs naturally in pure form.John P. Rafferty, ed. ( ...
s, rocks,
gems Gems, or gemstones, are polished, cut stones or minerals. Gems or GEMS may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Gems'' (Aerosmith album), 1988 * ''Gems'' (Patti LaBelle album), 1994 * ''Gems'' (Michael Bolton album), 2011 * Gems TV, ...
,
meteorites A meteorite is a solid piece of debris from an object, such as a comet, asteroid, or meteoroid, that originates in outer space and survives its passage through the atmosphere to reach the surface of a planet or moon. When the original object en ...
and
tektites Tektites (from grc, τηκτός , meaning 'molten') are gravel-sized bodies composed of black, green, brown or grey natural glass formed from terrestrial debris ejected during meteorite impacts. The term was coined by Austrian geologist Franz ...
. The department's collection holds taxonomic and stratigraphic (rock layers and layering) material that is representative of Western Australia's palaeobiological (the biology of fossil animals and plants) evolution and geological history from 3.8 billion years ago to a few thousand years ago. There are over 1.5 million items in the department collections. *The History Department specialises in developing collections reflecting the material life of Western Australians, and researching the story of the people and places in Western Australia in all its diversity. The department also holds the Edith Cowan University Museum of Childhood Collection (ECU Museum of Childhood Collection), a nationally significant collection of 24,000 items is reflective of Western Australian childhood, donated to the WA Museum in 2009 by
Edith Cowan University Edith Cowan University (ECU) is a public university in Western Australia. It is named in honour of the first woman to be elected to an Australian parliament, Edith Cowan, and is the only Australian university named after a woman. Gaining unive ...
. *The Anthropology and Archaeology Department specialises in cultural anthropology and archaeology. The department's research, collections and public programs focus on understanding what it is to be human, cultural diversity, exploring complex relationships between society, culture, language, sociality and economy. The department specialises in the study of Ancient Egypt, Aboriginal cultures (particularly the South West, Pilbara, Desert and Kimberley regions) and indigenous cultures of the Ancient World. There are also some of the collection items from the Maritime Archaeology and Maritime History departments housed at the CRC; however staff from Maritime Archaeology and Maritime History are located at WA Shipwrecks Museum. The Materials Conservation department is responsible for ensuring the millions of items in the museum's collections are permanently preserved for reference, research and exhibition through the use of preventive and remedial conservation techniques in accordance with international and national standards of best practice. The Materials Conservation department also possesses a research division in its overall structure which develop conservation techniques and methodologies.


Publications

The Museum has produced its own publications of books over time, as well as ''Records of the Western Australian Museum'' since 1910 and for a short time between 1998 and 2005 produced ''Tracks''. The ''Records of the Museum'' is the museum's peer-reviewed journal which publishes the results of research into all branches of natural sciences and social and cultural history. Between 1910 and 2012, over 800 articles were published in this journal, the vast majority written after 1975. All individual articles published through the records are available for free download on the WA Museum website.


Controversy

In December 2020 the Western Australian Museum removed what it said were two factual errors on labels in a multimedia display after complaints about their veracity, including from the
consul general A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...
of the
People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
(PRC) in Perth. One pertained to
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, which the museum initially labelled as originating from China. The other pertained to
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
, which the museum initially depicted on a map as a
country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...
, specifically the Republic of China (ROC), that is distinct from China rather than including "Taiwan as a Chinese territory". This is controversial because "China regards Taiwan as a breakaway province which it has vowed to retake, by force if necessary. It says the ROC's lack of diplomatic recognition proves that the world agrees there is only one China." The museum altered the visuals in response to the complaints, saying that the
World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...
is still investigating the origin of COVID-19, and that the map "did not include Taiwan... as part of China, which is not in line with Australian government policy". However,
Mark McGowan Mark McGowan (born 13 July 1967) is an Australian politician, the 30th premier of Western Australia, and the leader of the Western Australian branch of the Labor Party. McGowan was born and raised in Newcastle, New South Wales. He attended t ...
, the Premier of Western Australia, stated that "the decision to change the exhibits was the museum's." Additionally, Mark Harrison, a senior lecturer in Chinese studies at the University of Tasmania, pointed out that contrary to the museum's claims, including Taiwan as part of China is "not actually reflective of 'Australian government policy. Rather, the Australian government "uses a deliberate ambiguity on the status of Taiwan" and "is very careful to not use maps of national boundaries that show Taiwan as part of the PRC". The changes drew a critical reaction from
Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization, headquartered in New York City, that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. The group pressures governments, policy makers, companies, and individual human r ...
researcher Sophie McNeill, who said that it is "very important that our cultural institutions rely on accuracy and facts and don't bow to pressure from the
Chinese Communist Party The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...
who are often trying to censor and rewrite history". In a statement, the museum rejected any claims of bowing to bullying, saying the errors "were literally factual errors that we were very happy to correct", and that the errors were corrected in line with the museum's policy on accuracy.


Gallery

File:Hackett Hall public library WA 1913.jpg, Hackett Hall in 1913. The building is now part of WA Museum Boola Bardip.


See also

* List of museums in Western Australia


Notes


References


External links

*
Atlas of Living Australia
– WA Museum taxonomic collections
Department of Culture and Arts
{{authority control Museums in Perth, Western Australia Landmarks in Perth, Western Australia Local museums in Australia Maritime museums in Australia Museums established in 1891 Heritage places in Perth, Western Australia Culture in Perth, Western Australia Natural history museums in Australia Science and technology in Western Australia 1891 establishments in Australia Maritime and Shipwreck Galleries Perth Cultural Centre