Discover stories behind the latest exhibitions, fascinating explorations into maritime science and archaeology, and the surprising details of what happens inside (and outside) a modern working museum.

The second pilot steamer  Captain Cook (II) was designed by W D Cruikshank and built at Mort’s Dock & Engineering Company in 1892. Used as a naval training ship during World War II, it was scuttled off Sydney in October 1947. Photographed c 1920 by William James Hall. ANMM Collection ANMS1092[015] Gift from Mr and Mrs Glassford

07 Aug 2020

'Not all beer and skittles': Sydney Harbour pilotage
Image: Matt Hardy, Unsplash

04 Aug 2020

Fast Five: Quick questions with some of Australia's most important ocean defenders
Fold-out engraving from Ferrante Imperato's Dell'Historia Naturale (Naples 1599), the earliest illustration of a natural history cabinet. Source: Wikimedia

23 Jul 2020

Cabinet of curiosities
One of the Las Balsas rafts at sea, with the other two rafts in the background, 1973. Photograph by John Carnemolla. Image reproduced courtesy Ballina Naval & Maritime Museum

16 Jul 2020

Las Balsas: The world's longest raft journey
Green corals underwater

11 Jun 2020

World Oceans Day: Innovation of the Seas
Arthur Pringle as a lieutenant in 1899. Image courtesy of Eliots of Port Eliot

21 May 2020

'Ever your loving son': Arthur Pringle and his letters home
Fern New Zealand

16 Mar 2020

Recognising the first anniversary of the Christchurch mosque attacks
Women in their swimming costumes on the beach at Lindeman Island, Queensland, Christmas 1928

17 Feb 2020

Frolicking and Fossicking: Touring the Great Barrier Reef in 1928
Photograph of a woman digging on an archaeological site

04 Feb 2020

Digging for answers: Ten questions with Dr Anne Musser