Discover
The stories behind the Museum’s collections and exhibitions, and the work of our curators, scientists and staff.
Online Exhibitions
Canterbury and World War One: Lives Lost, Lives Changed
Explore the stories of Cantabrians who fought in World War One and those who stayed behind. Stories, historic photographs and images of notable objects relate the experiences of Cantabrians during the War. 18,000 New Zealand lives were lost during World War One and the lives of those who survived were changed forever by the conflict.
This online exhibition is representative of Canterbury and World War One: Lives Lost Lives Changed, a temporary exhibition at Canterbury Museum from 30 November 2017 to 11 November 2018.
Selling the Dream
Selling the Dream is a collection of world-class tourism posters promoting New Zealand’s unique attractions in an age before television and the Internet. Created by some of the country’s finest commercial artists, the themes promoted through the posters reveal New Zealand’s developing national identity in the early twentieth century.
Images in this online exhibition are the copyright of the individual organisations that are credited
Blog Posts
Museum curators, scientists and technicians share stories from the Museum’s collections and their internationally-recognised research. Sign up here and we’ll regularly deliver a blog post to your inbox.
Man's best friend in pre-European New Zealand
Tue, 05 Feb 2019
Kurī (dogs) arrived in New Zealand with the East Polynesian ancestors of Māori about 700 years ago. They were used in hunting and as guard dogs, and their fur and teeth were used in clothing and weapons.
Stories
Short stories from the collection and behind the scenes at the Museum. For easy access to our short stories, follow us on Facebook or Twitter, or subscribe to our e newsletter.
Painting the province
Fri, 11 Jan 2019
James Edward FitzGerald is best known as a political leader in early Canterbury. But he was also an enthusiastic amateur painter, and his artworks provide a valuable record of the earliest days of Canterbury settlement.
Rotoava's Romance
Fri, 21 Dec 2018
This scale model of a traditional Solomon Island war canoe was a labour of love for its carver.
Pricey Polaroids
Fri, 21 Dec 2018
When Edwin Land's three-year-old daughter asked why she couldn't see the photo he'd just taken of her, she sparked the invention of the Polaroid camera.
