In reviewing the museum’s natural history holdings for the latest exhibition, curators re-visited specimens that tell stories of bygone collecting practices when natural history specimens were commodified for fashion, trade, and scientific exchange both within Aotearoa and around the world.

The $20 million collection at New Zealand's oldest museum is at risk unless its aging research facility is replaced soon.

Nelson Provincial Museum Senior Curator of Photography Darryl Gallagher has recently uncovered the story of Henry and Alice Brusewitz, a husband and wife commercial photography team who opened for business in Nelson in the 1880s.

For the 2023 Mid-Autumn Festival, Dr Alistair Kwan undertook an object reading of some Chinese artefacts in the Nelson Provincial Museum Pupuri Taonga o Te Tai Ao.

In 2023, Sunday September 3rd marked Merchant Navy Day, which commemorates the role of civilian seafaring crew during periods of armed conflict.

In both world wars, as well as in smaller conflicts, the crews of cargo and passenger ships often encountered peril, unlike any other group of civilians.

When the Nelson Provincial Museum recently acquired tikumu (Celmisia semicordata) samples from a local weaver, they joined a collection of this rare alpine daisy that pre-date European settlement.

When thousands of Nelsonians gathered on Tāhunanui Beach more than 100 years ago and raised money for the people of Belgium, they demonstrated their support for people living in war-torn countries, a practise that continues in the region to this day

Read more about Nelson's long history of humanitarian support.

Nelson Provincial Museum senior collections technician Michael Davies has compiled a diverse range of clay objects from the Museum’s collection and the stories behind them.

In celebration of Māori language month, Nelson Provincial Museum’s Kaitiaki Taonga Māori has chosen to share kōrero and mātauranga (stories and knowledge) about his favourite taonga in the Museum’s textile collection.

View images of Queen Elizabeth’s visits to Nelson during her seventy-year reign.

To celebrate the 47th year of Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, we have chosen to share a selection of taonga (treasures) with you, profiled by our Kaitiaki Taonga Māori (Māori Taonga Collections Manager) Hamuera Manihera.

Only a limited number of velocipedes, also known as ‘bone shakers’, remain in museums and private collections around the world – and Nelson is home to two of them.

An unusual model ship, made from animal bone, reveals much about Nelson’s history.

A real estate advertisement printed almost 180 years ago has reignited speculation about the history of one of Nelson’s earliest landowners, Mr John J Imrie.

A brief history of the Nelson Provincial Museum Pupuri Taonga o Te Tai Ao.

Learn about two of the very significant taonga in our collection, which show what a pūtātara (traditional Māori trumpet) might have looked like hundreds of years ago.

Captain James Faulkner Balck used his collection of battlefield objects to raise money for his fellow soldiers still fighting on the European front during World War I.

Visitors to Nelson Provincial Museum are invited to view, and even share mauri, with Te Rongo o Matangi Āwhio, which is on permanent display in the regional gallery.

Collections Online has become a vital part of preserving our collection for future generations, while at the same time making them accessible to the public.

A recent acquisition of colour photographs by Bernard Vavasour captures a beautiful visual record of our region.

As part of our mission to collect ‘history as it happens’, our strategic collecting focus for 2022 relates to food production and retail in our beautiful region.

To commemorate Remembrance Day, the Nelson Provincial Museum would like to acknowledge the generous donation of two significant medals awarded to Belgian nurse Mariette Victorina van Aerde during WWI.

In 2017, the Museum presented its first trilingual (English, Chinese (Mandarin) and Te Reo Māori) display about Appo Hocton.

To celebrate Te Wiki Tūao ā-Motu, National Volunteer Week we are profiling on of the most recent volunteer projects that has been completed.

We found another violinist who made Nelson home. Read more about Herr von Zimmermann.

Find out more about the talented violinist Louise Croucher, born in Richmond in 1885.