1,277 charts and maps dating from the 16th to the late 19th centuries, including maps of the Pacific and New Zealand as well as Australia.

About 5,000 books, pamphlets and periodicals, over 11,000 paintings, drawings and prints, around 800 maps and over 300 manuscripts mostly published 1770–1900. Largely relating to Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific including Antarctica.

Diaries, papers, photographs, maps and other material related to Australia's involvement in the Antarctic

Module

This resource is aligned to the Australian Curriculum: History for Year 8 students. It adopts an inquiry learning approach that develops students’ skills in investigating Asia-Pacific societies in depth.

Learn about Dr Christina Thompson's experience as a Creative Arts Fellow researching the introduction of writing in Polynesia.

Maritime historian Chris Maxworthy explored early interactions of colonial Australia with Peru and Chile (1788-1810).

Find out how to access over 60,000 passes issued to Indian people who came to Fiji as indentured labourers.

The microfilm collection includes 78 manuscripts copied by the South Pacific Commission, created by missionaries, anthropologists, and linguists between 1900 and 1956. 

Papers and microfilm of original records relating to the German colonies in the Pacific from 1884-1914, and a selection of other books on this topic.

Dr Christina Thompson presented a lecture on her 2023 Creative Arts Fellowship research into what happened when writing arrived on the islands of the Pacific.

The Library holds a rich and diverse range of documentary materials relating to the Pacific region, including Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia and New Zealand.

Library staff recently attended the Melanesian Arts and Culture Festival (MACFEST), returning with new acquisitions, knowledge and connections.