Western Australian Museum
Encyclopedia
States and territories of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a union of six states and various territories. The Australian mainland is made up of five states and three territories, with the sixth state of Tasmania being made up of islands. In addition there are six island territories, known as external territories, and a...
museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
for Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
The Western Australian Museum has seven main sites: two in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
within the Perth Cultural Centre
Perth Cultural Centre
The Perth Cultural Centre is an area of central Perth, Western Australia and the collective name for the buildings of the Art Gallery of Western Australia, Western Australian Museum, Perth Gaol, Alexander Library, State Records Office, and Perth Institute of Contemporary Arts .William Street,...
, two in Fremantle
Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle is a city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829...
(Maritime and Shipwreck Galleries), and one each in Albany
Albany, Western Australia
Albany is a port city in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, some 418 km SE of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population was estimated at 33,600, making it the 6th-largest city in the state....
, Geraldton
Geraldton, Western Australia
Geraldton is a city and port in Western Australia located north of Perth in the Mid West region. Geraldton has an estimated population at June 2010 of 36,958...
, and Kalgoorlie-Boulder. The Western Australian Museum is a statutory authority within the Culture and the Arts Portfolio, established under the Museum Act 1969.
History
Established in 1891 in the old Perth goalPerth Gaol
The Perth Gaol was a gaol built in Perth, Western Australia between 1854 and 1856 to house convicts and other prisoners. It operated until March 1888 when the last prisoner was transferred to Fremantle Prison...
, it was known as the Geological Museum and consisted of geological collections. In 1892 ethnological and biological were added, and in 1897 the museum officially became the Western Australian Museum and Art Gallery.
During 1959 the botanical collection was transferred to the new Herbarium and the Museum and the Art Gallery became separate institutions. The museum focussed its collecting and research interests in the areas of natural sciences, anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
, archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
and in Western Australia's history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
. Over the 1960s and 1970s it also began to work in the then emerging areas of historic shipwrecks and Aboriginal
Australian Aborigines
Australian Aborigines , also called Aboriginal Australians, from the latin ab originem , are people who are indigenous to most of the Australian continentthat is, to mainland Australia and the island of Tasmania...
site management.
Western Australian Museum locations
The Western Museum has six museum branches and four collection facilities. The Museum also offers Outreach Services to all areas of Western Australia.| Detail | Western Australian Museum – Perth | Western Australian Museum – Maritime | Western Australian Museum – Shipwreck Galleries | Western Australian Museum – Albany | Western Australian Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder | Western Australian Museum – Geraldton |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Address | Perth Cultural Centre, James Street, Perth, Western Australia |
Victoria Quay, Fremantle, Western Australia, |
Cliff Street, Fremantle, Western Australia |
Residency Road, Albany, Western Australia |
1 Museum Place, Batavia Coast Marina, Geraldton, Western Australia |
17 Hannan Street, Kalgoorlie, Western Australia |
| Phone | (08) 9212 3700 | (08) 9431 8334 | (08) 9431 8444 | (08) 9841 4844 | (08) 9921 5080 | (08) 9021 8533 |
| Opening Hours | Open daily: 9.30am – 5.00pm Open ANZAC Day 1.00pm – 5.00pm Closed: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Good Friday. |
Open daily: 9.30am – 5.00pm Open ANZAC Day 1.00pm – 5.00pm Closed: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Good Friday. |
Open daily: 9.30am – 5.00pm Open ANZAC Day 1.00pm – 5.00pm Closed: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Good Friday. |
Open daily: 10.00am – 4.30pm Open ANZAC Day 1.00pm – 5.00pm Closed: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Good Friday. |
Open daily: 10.00am – 4.30pm Open ANZAC Day 1.00pm – 5.00pm Closed: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Good Friday. |
Open daily: 9.30am – 4.00pm Open ANZAC Day 1.00pm – 5.00pm Closed: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Day and Good Friday. |
Western Australian Museum — Perth
Wednesday 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 represents 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 the large and currently vacant building on Francis Street that was closed due to concerns with asbestos
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...
.
Throughout the Western Australian Museum's history the prominent James Street location has remained central to the Museum's identity and where many large permanent and touring exhibitions have been housed. Most recently the international blockbuster exhibition A Day in Pompeii was displayed from 25 May - 12 September which attracted more than 110,000 people.
Permanent exhibitions on display at the Western Australian Museum - Perth include:
- WA Land and People: This exhibition tells the story of Western Australia from the prehistoric times of dinosaurs, to indigenous beginnings, and through to the environmental issues of the present day.
- Diamonds to Dinosaurs: An exhibition exploring 12 billion years of WA's history, featuring specimens such 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 exhibition explores the biodiversity of the waters around the Dampier Archipelago.
- Mammal, Bird and Butterfly Galleries: These galleries contain extensive collections of various animals.
The Western Australian Museum — Perth also features the Discovery Centre, designed to help children and adults interact and learn about the Museum's collections and research.
Western Australian Museum — Maritime and Western Australian Museum - Shipwreck Galleries
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
, the Swan River
Swan River (Western Australia)
The Swan River estuary flows through the city of Perth, in the south west of Western Australia. Its lower reaches are relatively wide and deep, with few constrictions, while the upper reaches are usually quite narrow and shallow....
, fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, maritime
Sea
A sea generally refers to a large body of salt water, but the term is used in other contexts as well. Most commonly, it means a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, and is commonly used as a synonym for ocean...
trade
Trade
Trade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
and naval defence
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
. One of the museum's highlights is the yacht
Yacht
A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...
Australia II
Australia II
Australia II is the Australian 12-metre-class challenge racing yacht that was launched in 1982 and won the 1983 America's Cup for the Royal Perth Yacht Club...
, which won the America's Cup
America's Cup
The America’s Cup is a trophy awarded to the winner of the America's Cup match races between two yachts. One yacht, known as the defender, represents the yacht club that currently holds the America's Cup and the second yacht, known as the challenger, represents the yacht club that is challenging...
in 1983.
Situated adjacent to the Western Australian Museum - Maritime is HMAS Ovens
HMAS Ovens
HMAS Ovens is an Oberon class submarine formerly of the Royal Australian Navy which is now preserved as a museum ship.-Design and construction:...
, an Oberon class submarine
Oberon class submarine
The Oberon class was a 27-boat class of British-built diesel-electric submarines based on the successful British Porpoise-class submarine....
that is open for guided tours.
Nearby in Cliff Street, Fremantle, the Western Australian Museum - Shipwreck Galleries is recognised as the foremost maritime archaeology and shipwreck conservation museum in the southern hemisphere. The museum is housed in 1850s-era Commissariat building and contains a reconstructed hull from the Batavia
Batavia (ship)
Batavia was a ship of the Dutch East India Company . It was built in Amsterdam in 1628, and armed with 24 cast iron cannons and a number of bronze guns. Batavia was shipwrecked on her maiden voyage, and was made famous by the subsequent mutiny and massacre that took place among the survivors...
, which was wrecked off the coast of Western Australia in 1629. It also houses the horizontal trunk engine recovered from the iron steamer SS Xantho
SS Xantho
Powered by a horizontal trunk engine, SS Xantho was a steam ship used in the colony of Western Australia as a pearling transport and mothership, as a tramp steamer, carrying passengers, including Aboriginal convicts and trade goods before she sank at Port Gregory, Western Australia in 1872.The...
which sank in 1872. This unit, the only known example of the first mass produced, high speed and high pressure marine engines, can now be turned over by hand. With its CEO also responsible for the historic wrecks off the coast of Western Australia, many shipwrecks appear in the Museum's 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. These 'trails' now appear at many places along the coast.
Western Australian Museum — Albany
Recently refurbished in July 2010 the Western Australian Museum — Albany is situated at the site of the first European settlement in Western Australia. This Museum explores the region's biodiversity, the stories of the indigenous Noongar people and ancient natural environment.The Albany Museum was the original residence of Major Edmund Lockyer as the commanding officer of the settlement group that landed in Princess Royal Harbour on 26 December 1826, and formally proclaimed sovereignty on 21 January 1827 for King George IV 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 Brig Amity (Replica non-navigable), they were the subject of investigation by the Commonwealth of Australia and UNESCO as a convict colonial settlement (not included in the formal nomination).
Western Australian Museum — Kalgoorlie-Boulder
The Western Australian Museum — Kalgoorlie-Boulder explores the history of the Eastern Goldfields, the city’s mining heritage and the hardships faced by the early mining and pioneer families.Western Australian Museum — Geraldton
Western Australian Museum - 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, the BataviaBatavia (ship)
Batavia was a ship of the Dutch East India Company . It was built in Amsterdam in 1628, and armed with 24 cast iron cannons and a number of bronze guns. Batavia was shipwrecked on her maiden voyage, and was made famous by the subsequent mutiny and massacre that took place among the survivors...
sunk in the nearby Abrolhos islands. This Museum features the portico recovered from this wreck which was been reconstructed to form the centre of the Museum's shipwreck gallery.
Western Australian Museum research departments
The Western Australian Museum has an extensive research program, with museum scientists and curators specialising in the fields of aquatic zoology, archaeology and anthropology, conservation, earth and planetary sciences, history, maritime archaeology, maritime history and terrestrial zoology. The museum also has a specialist materials conservation team.Aquatic Zoology department
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 MalacologyMalacology
Malacology is the branch of invertebrate zoology which deals with the study of the Mollusca , the second-largest phylum of animals in terms of described species after the arthropods. Mollusks include snails and slugs, clams, octopus and squid, and numerous other kinds, many of which have shells...
, Ichthyology
Ichthyology
Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish. This includes skeletal fish , cartilaginous fish , and jawless fish...
, Crustacea, Marine Invertebrates
Marine invertebrates
Marine invertebrates are animals that inhabit a marine environment and are invertebrates, lacking a vertebral column. In order to protect themselves, they may have evolved a shell or a hard exoskeleton, but this is not always the case....
and Worm
Worm
The term worm refers to an obsolete taxon used by Carolus Linnaeus and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck for all non-arthropod invertebrate animals, and stems from the Old English word wyrm. Currently it is used to describe many different distantly-related animals that typically have a long cylindrical...
s.
Archaeology and Anthropology department
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 EgyptAncient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
, Aboriginal cultures (particularly the South West, Pilbara, Desert and Kimberley regions) and indigenous cultures of the Ancient World.
Earth and Planetary Sciences department
The Earth and Planetary Sciences department study and collect in the areas of Fossils (invertebrate, vertebrate, plant and trace fossils), Minerals, Rocks, GemsGemstone
A gemstone or gem is a piece of mineral, which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments...
, Meteorites and Tektites. 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, right through to just a few thousand years ago. There are over 1.5 million items in the department collections.
History department
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 ECU Museum of Childhood Collection, a nationally significant collection of 24,000 items is reflective of Western Australian childhood.Maritime Archaeology department
The Maritime Archaeology department primarily researches shipwreck archaeology from the Western Australian coast, including the famous BataviaBatavia (ship)
Batavia was a ship of the Dutch East India Company . It was built in Amsterdam in 1628, and armed with 24 cast iron cannons and a number of bronze guns. Batavia was shipwrecked on her maiden voyage, and was made famous by the subsequent mutiny and massacre that took place among the survivors...
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 SS Xantho
SS Xantho
Powered by a horizontal trunk engine, SS Xantho was a steam ship used in the colony of Western Australia as a pearling transport and mothership, as a tramp steamer, carrying passengers, including Aboriginal convicts and trade goods before she sank at Port Gregory, Western Australia in 1872.The...
program and underwater aviation archaeology.
Maritime History department
Maritime History specialises in collections of images and artefacts representing the individuals, communities, and organisations that contribute to the maritime history and heritage of Western Australia.Materials Conservation department
The Materials Conservation department is responsible for ensuring the 4.5 million 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.Terrestrial Zoology department
The Terrestrial Zoology department of the Western Australian Museum 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.Proposed new museum
In February 2008, the Government of Western AustraliaGovernment of Western Australia
The formation of the Government of Western Australia is prescribed in its Constitution, which dates from 1890, although it has been amended many times since then...
announced that it would build a new $500 million museum at the East Perth Power Station
East Perth Power Station
The East Perth Power Station is a disused power station located in East Perth, Western Australia.The site consists of a complex of industrial buildings occupying more than 8.5 hectares, bounded by East Parade, Summers Street, the Swan River and the Graham Farmer Freeway.-History:The Power Station...
site. However, following the election of a new State Liberal party
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
government under Colin Barnett
Colin Barnett
Colin James Barnett , Australian politician, is the leader of the Western Australian Liberal Party, the 29th and current Premier of Western Australia since the 2008 election and served as the Treasurer of Western Australia in 2010. He was sworn into office by Governor Ken Michael on 23 September 2008...
, the redevelopment plans were scrapped in early February 2009. A change in economic fortunes for the state was cited as the reason to abandon the plan. A redevelopment of the museum's Francis Street building in the Perth Cultural Centre was listed as a preferred location. So far, $13 million dollars has been committed to demolish the old building, but as yet no major project has been committed to build new museum on this site.