“This museum holds the only colossal squid specimen in the world, weighing 495 kg, pulled from the Antarctic deep in 2007.”
About Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Te Papa opened in 1998, replacing the old National Museum and National Art Gallery. It was designed as a bicultural institution from the outset, with Maori governance structures embedded in its operations. The colossal squid was acquired in 2007. The Gallipoli exhibit, produced with Weta Workshop, opened in 2015.
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Te Papa Tongarewa sits on the Wellington waterfront and is New Zealand's national museum. The name translates roughly as "our container of treasured things," and the museum bridges Maori and European New Zealand through collections that span natural history, art, national identity and the Pacific. It is free to enter and is the most-visited museum in Australasia.
Te Papa Tongarewa sits on the Wellington waterfront and is New Zealand's national museum.
A Country in One Building
Te Papa opened in 1998 as an attempt to tell the complete story of New Zealand, from geology to colonisation to contemporary identity, in a single institution. The building is deliberately bicultural: the Maori galleries are designed in partnership with iwi (tribal groups), and the presentation treats Maori knowledge and European science as parallel frameworks rather than one subordinate to the other. The natural history collections include the world's only colossal squid specimen, caught in the Ross Sea in 2007, and the earthquake simulator gives visitors a physical sense of the seismic forces that shape the islands. The Gallipoli exhibit uses oversized hyper-realistic sculptures by Weta Workshop to tell the story of New Zealand's role in the First World War, and the effect is emotionally powerful in a way that conventional displays rarely achieve. The museum also holds significant Pacific and contemporary art collections.
The Experience
The ground floor opens onto the waterfront and the galleries spread across six levels. The Maori galleries include a carved meeting house and taonga (treasured objects) displayed according to iwi protocols. The colossal squid is preserved in a tank on an upper floor. The Gallipoli exhibit is arresting: the Weta Workshop sculptures are 2.4 times life size and rendered with unsettling realism. The earthquake house shakes you in a simulation of the 2016 Kaikoura quake. The museum is large enough to absorb a full day.
Why It Matters
Te Papa is one of the most innovative national museums in the world, pioneering a bicultural approach that has influenced museum practice internationally. Its combination of natural history, Maori heritage and national identity tells the New Zealand story with unusual depth and honesty.
Te Papa is one of the most innovative national museums in the world, pioneering a bicultural approach that has influenced museum practice internationally.
Why Visit
New Zealand's national museum on the Wellington waterfront, with the world's only colossal squid, a bicultural Maori-European approach and the powerful Gallipoli exhibit by Weta Workshop.
✦ Insider Tips
- 1
Start with the Gallipoli exhibit; it is the emotional core.
- 2
The colossal squid is on an upper floor; don't miss it.
- 3
Allow at least half a day; a full day is better.
- 4
The museum is free; no booking required.
