Museum of New Zealand

Te Papa Tongarewa

Free museum entry for New Zealanders and people living in New Zealand

International visitor tickets

2022 media releases

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An exhibition of firsts: Mataaho Collective’s monumental installation at Te Papa

Thu 15 Dec 2022

A major new commission by acclaimed New Zealand artists Mataaho Collective will open at Te Papa on Sunday 18 December, alongside five of the collective’s existing artworks, shown together for the first time.

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1,000 incense sticks and 1,000 chimes: new art at Te Papa

Thu 8 Dec 2022

Recently-acquired works by New Zealand artists Dane Mitchell and Kate Newby will be shown side-by-side in Toi Art at Te Papa.

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Photo of a group of men in a waka in a body of water

Te Papa exhibitions celebrate waka and their communities

Tue 1 Nov 2022

Friends enjoy benefits and discounts including invitations to previews and private viewings.

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New exhibition reveals power struggles hidden in our landscapes

Thu 6 Oct 2022

A new exhibition opening at Te Papa on Saturday 8 October explores how artists past and present have expressed their relationships with the land in Aotearoa.

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A group of woman sit on a stage surrounding ancestral remains, which are covered by feathered cloaks

Te Papa welcomes home ancestral remains

Mon 3 Oct 2022

This morning, Te Papa welcomed home Māori and Moriori ancestral remains, repatriated from the Natural History Museum, Vienna. A repatriation pōwhiri marked the return of these ancestors.

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An old photo showing a bearded man carrying a pack and a rifle

Austria returns ancestral remains stolen by notorious grave-robber

Tue 27 Sep 2022

On Sunday 2 October, Te Papa will welcome home Māori and Moriori ancestral remains being repatriated from the Natural History Museum, Vienna.

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Painting of a woman standing in front of a rural train station. The station is made of corrugated iron and painted brown. The woman stands with her arms crossed, wearing a red dress with a floral design around its swooping neck line

Te Papa acquires two paintings from BNZ art collection auction

Mon 19 Sep 2022

Te Papa has acquired two paintings at an auction of one of the country’s most important private art collections.

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A man in a white jacket leads several people into a building. Many of them are carrying green boxes with human remains in them

Largest-ever repatriation of Moriori ancestral remains welcomed at Te Papa

Fri 8 Jul 2022

This morning, Te Papa welcomed 111 Kōimi T’chakat Moriori (Moriori skeletal remains) and 2 Māori ancestral remains with a hokomaurahiri (repatriation ceremony).

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A man holds a cloak out over a cloth-covered box. There are several people standing in the background looking on.

Largest-ever repatriation of Moriori ancestral remains

Tue 5 Jul 2022

Te Papa will welcome 111 Kōimi T’chakat Moriori (Moriori skeletal remains) and 2 Māori ancestral remains when they are repatriated to Aotearoa New Zealand this week.

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‘Bright, optimistic, and hopeful’ Matariki public holiday launched at Te Papa

Fri 24 Jun 2022

Te Papa hosted a globally significant milestone today with the launch of the country’s first public holiday that acknowledges mātauranga Māori | indigenous knowledge.

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Three people explore the three areas in the Matariki Experience at Te Papa

E ko te hautapu, he rite ki te kai nā Matariki! Matariki hunga nui, te mātahi o te tau. Nau mai rā!

Fri 10 Jun 2022

Ka tū te whakarewanga ake o te hararei ā-motu tuatahi o Matariki ki Te Papa i te atapō o te Rāmere te 24 o Pipiri.

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Three people explore the three areas in the Matariki Experience at Te Papa

Te Papa hosts official launch of Matariki, opens exhibition, announces events

Fri 10 Jun 2022

Te Papa will host the official launch of Matariki as a public holiday at a pre-dawn ceremony on Friday 24 June.

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Woodcut print of a women washing her clothes

Te Papa and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki launch retrospective of celebrated Aotearoa artist Dame Robin White

Fri 3 Jun 2022

Te Papa and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki are delighted to open the retrospective exhibition of contemporary Aotearoa artist Dame Robin White (b.1946, Ngāti Awa, Pāhekā) on Saturday 4 June.

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Three people on the floor and one person in a scissor lift install a large bunch of silver helium balloons in a large room

Massive floating sculpture ‘The silverings’ lifts off at Te Papa

Mon 23 May 2022

A new installation by Australian artist Mikala Dwyer has opened in Te Papa’s two-storey threshold gallery.

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Jars of fish on a long shelf with hundreds of fish in jars

Te Papa receives funding for new storage facility

Thu 19 May 2022

Te Papa has been allocated $42.9 million in Budget 2022 to create a new storage and research facility that will house part of New Zealand’s natural history collection.

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Two women standing in front of a blue corrugated iron shed. They are both holding cups of tea and looking at the camera. There is a cat beside one of them.

Exhibition celebrating artist Robin White set to open at Te Papa and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki

Tue 5 Apr 2022

In 2022, Te Papa and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki will come together to jointly present a retrospective exhibition of contemporary Aotearoa artist Dame Robin White (b.1946, Ngāti Awa, Pāhekā).

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Illustration depicting two ducks on a shoreline, with a group of ducks flying above

Big fossil duck discovered in Central Otago

Thu 10 Mar 2022

One of the richest fossil sites in New Zealand has revealed a new species of large, extinct, duck.

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Claire holds up for the camera a rugby jersey that is sitting on a table

Te Papa acquires unique rugby collection including ‘Originals’ jersey

Tue 22 Feb 2022

Te Papa has acquired a unique collection of rugby jerseys and memorabilia, including a rare jersey from the 1905 ‘Originals’ team.

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