Collections Online

COLLECTIONS ONLINE HELP

Collections Online is a searchable database of objects and specimens from Te Papa's permanent collection. Each database record includes information about an object or specimen as well as an image, when available. It is possible to zoom in on many of the images.

Due to the extremely large number of objects and specimens in Te Papa's collection, not all objects or specimens are currently available in Collections Online. Further, many of the records available were created from historic documentation that does not necessarily represent the best available knowledge about the objects or specimens. Imaging of collections is also a resource intensive process, so not all records have images. Some images may contain colour bars or other devices to help in accurate capture and reproduction of the objects.

Review and updating of these records is a continual process, and more records and images are released each month

The quick search box searches across all available collection objects.

Enter a word or phrase in the box and press "Search".

Click on the "Search only with images" checkbox to restrict the search results to only those objects that have images available.

Advanced Search allows you to specify where to search for each word or phrase.

The Advanced Search page displays the fields, or categories of information, that are searchable. You can enter words, phrases or terms selected from lists in one or more of the fields. For example, you can select the name of an artist from the list in the Maker field and enter the date the object was made in the Production Date field.

Cultural History Advanced Search searches across all art, photography, Māori, history, and Pacific collections.

Natural History Advanced Search searches across all natural environment collections.

Click on the "Search only with images" checkbox to restrict the search results to only those objects with images available.

Results can be displayed as either a list or as thumbnails.

Click on an image or an object title for more information about that collection object.

Results can also be downloaded to a table that can be opened in Microsoft Excel or equivalent software packages. Images cannot be included in the table. Click on "Export csv" to download the results of a search.

Each object record has a "Details" page describing the object together with an image where available.

Clicking on the image in the Detail page view will open a larger image in a popup window. Many images are enabled with Zoomify technology which provides tools by which you can zoom in on area of an image. Click on the image to zoom in on the area clicked. Click and drag the image to centre on the area you wish to view.

Yes, the search results will include the requested words spelt with or without macrons on their vowels.

If you are interested in a particular object and would like to know more information about it, we encourage you to contact us at mail@tepapa.govt.nz. Please include the registration number of the object you are enquiring about in your email.

We seek to expand our knowledge of the objects held in our collections and displayed on this site. You are invited to help achieve this goal by contacting us to discuss further information or comments you may have relating to the objects you see here. If you would like to submit information or make comments, we encourage you to contact us at mail@tepapa.govt.nz. Please include the registration number of the object you are enquiring about in your email.

Try using the advanced search, or enter more specific terms, e.g., watercolours rather than art.

Remember that this is only a part of Te Papa’s collections. However, we are continually adding items to the Collections Online database.

You can also try to browse the objects by subject:

If you need more help or would like to know more about Collections Online, please contact us.