Highlights

This page showcases a number of highlights from the museum's collections that have been used in special projects or exhibitions.

	Victorian Facial Hair Mutton-chops, sideburns, handle-bar moustaches, big bushy beards, once upon a time every man sported some kind of fuzz on his face, it was a matter of manly pride. During the Victorian period, starting about 1850, suddenly everyone was carefully cultivating one dramatic style or another. The Victorian era had taken over from French Regency which was famous for its obsession with men’s wigs, heels and make-up, replacing all these with sombre clothes and a full face of hair. We have put together a collection of photographic records highlighting some fine examples of the Victorian facial hair fashion.
	Davis Collection William Henry Davis (1837-1875) specialised in studio portraits and developed a significant early portrait collection
	Bloch Collection Theodor Thorlacius Bloch (1844-1935): From 1868 to 1872, in partnership with his future brother-in-law, William Brickell Gibbs, he operated Gibbs & Bloch in Trafalgar Street, Nelson.
	Alexander Fletcher Collection This collection consists of 750 largely unidentified early photographs by 19th century Scottish photographer, Alexander Fletcher.
	Nina Jones Botanical Paintings Watercolour paintings of botanical specimens from the Nina Jones Collection.
	Coming Home The 11th November 2008 marked the 90th anniversary of the end of World War 1. To commemorate this event The Nelson Provincial Museum took part in a national online collaborative project called Coming Home Te Hokinga Mai. Click on the image to look at the images the Museum contributed to this project.
	Marsden Book Collection This unique Book Collection dates from 1773 to the early 1920s and relates to natural history, discovery and exploration of the Pacific and provides the nucleus of the research library collection. The collection is part of the larger Marsden Collection held by the museum for more information go to: http://www.museumnp.org.nz/general/collections.htm