This year Qantas marks its centenary in a struggle to survive a global pandemic, with massive staff cuts in response to border closures, international lockdowns and economic adversities. Continue reading Beyond Queensland and the Northern Territory
In an iconic visual statement that has shaped the cultural landscape of Brisbane for 20 years, we unpack the life cycle of the pod of Humpback Whales that hang from the breezeway of the Queensland Museum. The creation The 1980s saw the creative build of the pod as museum employees Todd Knight, Terry Tebble, Karen Mickan and Jan Williams chipped away at the spectacular showpiece, … Continue reading Creating & Relocating a Whale Pod: BTS of The Whale Mall
Every year on Remembrance Day, and indeed Anzac Day, The Workshops Rail Museum hosts a service at the Ipswich Railway Workshop War Memorial. This year we are preparing to mark the day in a different way. We are privileged to have the War Memorial established by workers of the North Ipswich Railway Workshops on our grounds at The Workshops Rail Museum. It stand as a … Continue reading Remembering on Remembrance Day
In commemoration of Steve Irwin Day (November 15), Queensland Museum reflects on the species they’ve named in honour of the Wildlife Warriors. From a striking new species of snail, to a discovery of miniscule arachnid proportions, we’re admiring the Irwin legacy and the creatures they inspire. At a Snail’s Pace 2009 sparked the start of the Irwin tribute, as a new species and genus of … Continue reading Along Came A Spider and Snail, inspired by the Irwins
What does it take to be a palaeontologist? Join Dr Espen Knutsen, Senior Curator of Palaeontology for episode 13 of the Museum Revealed podcast as he outlines the process of preparing a plesiosaur fossil from the field to the lab and the new digital technologies that allow palaeontologists to look beyond the bones. Listen now on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Let’s meet our guest: Dr Espen Knutsen Dr … Continue reading Museum Revealed Podcast [Ep 13]: What does it take to be a palaeontologist with Dr Espen Knutsen
We’ve been collecting COVID-19 items including hand sanitiser, rainbow “honk for the helpers” signs and of course, face masks. On the Museum Revealed podcast today is Judith Hickson, Senior Curator of Social History who gives us an exclusive insight into contemporary collecting for the museum. Listen now on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Let’s meet our guest: Judith Hickson Judith Hickson joined the Queensland Museum in 2016 as a … Continue reading Museum Revealed Podcast [Ep 12]: Contemporary Collecting during COVID-19 with Judith Hickson
Crabs, shrimps, lobsters, barnacles and more – spend five minutes with Dr Marissa McNamara, Collection Manager (Crustacea) and learn some fascinating facts about crustaceans and some of the reasons she loves her job so much. What is your favourite species in the collection and why? Mantis shrimp! Mantis shrimp are deadly predators that strike with the speed of a bullet. They have specialised hunting limbs … Continue reading 5 minutes with Dr Marissa McNamara
Did you know molluscs are ancient creatures? They’ve been around for half a billion years! From snails to squids, Collection Manager of Molluscs, Darry Potter takes us through this enormously diverse group of animals. Listen now on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Let’s meet our guest: Darryl Potter Darryl is presently the Collection Manager for both the Mollusc and Crustacean sections. After completing studies in Applied … Continue reading Museum Revealed Podcast [Ep 11]: Snails, Squids and More Molluscs with Collection Manager Darryl Potter
The newly federated Australia took steps towards meeting its defence needs in the early years of the twentieth century. In 1911 The Government founded the Royal Australia Navy and establishing the small arms factory at Lithgow, and factories in Melbourne to produce saddlery and uniforms. Lord Kitchener, head of the British Army, visited in 1909 and suggested that Australia have an army 80,000, mostly made … Continue reading NOT those wagons, we’re British!
By Paul Oliver and Jessica Worthington Wilmer. This is a story about the about how the genes of obscure and rare animals can speak the history of our diverse landscapes. The stars of the story are two species of very odd-looking geckos. We typically think of geckos as big-eyed, soft-bodied lizards that run around on walls at night. But geckos are in fact a diverse … Continue reading Do you DIG legless lizards?
Take a deep dive virtually into the Great Barrier Reef this week as Dr Tom Bridge, Senior Curator of Corals spends 5 minutes chatting about his favourite parts of the collection and his research. What is your favourite species in the collection and why? Since I started at Museum of Tropical Queensland we have collected a number of new species. They are not yet registered … Continue reading 5 minutes with Dr Tom Bridge
By Judith Hickson, Curator, Queensland Stories Queensland Museum’s social history collection contains a number of objects which conceal unsettling histories. One of the more disturbing of these is a rusty old piece of machinery which was once used to drill sub-artesian bores throughout Queensland. The Facts To those who knew him, William (Bill) Groves was a quiet, steady man, not known to be a drinker. … Continue reading Old Bill’s Bones
By Dr Brit Asmussen Let’s celebrate World Bread Day with a peek inside the Queensland Museum’s Antiquities collections! Celebrating World Bread Day For millennia, bread has held an important place in many cultures. World Bread Day is an international observance celebrated on October 16 dedicated to this culinary staple, enjoyed by communities around the world and throughout history. Ancient Egyptian bread in the Queensland Museum … Continue reading Ancient Egyptian Bread and Beer for World Bread Day
We’ve been having a whale of a time bringing the Museum Revealed podcast to your earbuds. In episode 10, Heather Janetzki, Collection Manager of Mammals and Birds reveals the Queensland Museum Whale Collection. Listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Let’s meet our guest: Heather Janetzki Heather joined the Queensland Museum in 1986, shortly after it moved to its present site at South Brisbane. She worked as an Education … Continue reading Museum Revealed Podcast [Ep 10]: Queensland Museum’s Whale Collection with Heather Janetzki
Who would have thought that Brisbane would ever host an AFL Grand Final? It turns out though, that if you look back through history, this is not the first time that the rugby league heartland has become the epicentre of Aussie Rules. In fact, it is not even the first Aussie Rules grand final to be played at the Gabba. So, before the mighty Lions … Continue reading The Aussie Rules Circus comes to Brisbane… again
Spend five minutes with Dr Brit Asmussen, Acting Principal Curator, Cultures and Histories as she chats about her work as a research scientists and her favourite items in the Queensland Museum Collection. What is your favourite object in the collection and why? I currently work across several collections (Indigenous Cultures, Archaeology, Antiquities, World Cultures), and I find the more I work with the really wide … Continue reading 5 minutes with Dr Brit Asmussen
How It All Began Gardams Fabric Store has been part of a long-held tradition of dressing brides in Queensland for 90 years. The family business was started by Bert Gardam who arrived in Queensland as a ward of the state in 1921. At just 16 years of age and with only 10 shillings in his pocket, Bert obtained work on a sheep station and began … Continue reading 90 Years of Gardams – The History of the Queensland family business
One of Queensland Museum’s resident tenants took the stress of moving to a whole new level, as the giant squid found his tentacles being transported to a new abode. Past Life Before calling Queensland Museum home, the supersized ocean dweller was discovered lurking in the deep ocean off New Zealand, measuring a staggering 6.75 metres. The life of the preserved Architeuthis dux has spanned vast … Continue reading Relocating a Supersized Squid, Tentacles And All!
This week on the Museum Revealed podcast we’re rolling back to the days of horse drawn carriages with Cobb+Co Museum’s curator Jeff Powell. Listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Let’s meet our guest: Jeff Powell Jeff Powell is the curator at Cobb+Co Branch, Queensland Museum in Toowoomba, where he has clocked up more than 30 years. Cobb+Co Museum is home to a collection of around 50 … Continue reading Museum Revealed Podcast [Ep 9]: Cobb+Co Museum History with Jeff Powell
While researching for my paper Duty, Debt and Picket Lines: the Queensland Railway Department during the First World War for the Queensland Museum Memoir volume 11, I found a large amount of material that, due to space constraints, I was unable to include. Therefore, I thought writing a blog might be a good opportunity to publish these unused images and documents. The paper investigates the … Continue reading What didn’t make it into “Duty, Debt and Picket Lines: the Queensland Railway Department during the First World War”
