Manly at the turn of a century
15 Jan 2013
Throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s, a burst of events and individuals conspired to shape the area of Manly, in character as much as construction.
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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.
MB 172 returns to the museum
09 Jan 2013
This week, MB 172 returned to the museum after its annual slipping. Looking great with a new colour scheme, the vessel can now be viewed from the museum wharves.
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Two men in a boat - Opening of 2013 Sydney Festival
07 Jan 2013
According to the media reports there were 60,000 people watching. From my position, in the back of a canoe with Matt Doyle full blast on his didgeridoo in the front, I was too busy paddling and keeping it upright to notice just how many were watching us, taking pictures or filming.
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Christmas and the war effort
21 Dec 2012
A woman watches her two young children, as they play in the sand at a beach, happily enjoying the Australian sunshine and thought that Christmas is near. A familiar image you might say? On 13 December 1916, The Sydney Mail published an illustration depicting this scenario in the ‘Christmas Number’, with one crucial difference…
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Cooktown: The museum heads north for a week
21 Dec 2012
It’s hot. And humid. But what else can you expect for far north Queensland in December? And it could have been worse – however, the southest trades were blowing across the hills on the coast, providing a margin of comfort across the town.
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These are a few of our favourite things...
14 Dec 2012
The year is drawing to a close and we have enjoyed investigating, researching and sharing parts of the museum’s collection with you. We have come across the weird and wacky, but we have also made discoveries that have stopped us in our tracks and demonstrated the enormous depth of the collection.
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Bringing a champion back to life
07 Dec 2012
Meet Myra Too. In 1951 this vessel dominated Sydney sailing news headlines, and for a time was unbeatable in the hotly challenged 18 footer sailing competitions in Sydney Harbour.
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Australia’s first watercraft – Tales from ‘100 Stories’
07 Dec 2012
Yolngu country, eastern Arnhem Land, and the wet season is slowly seeping into the land. Three men haul a dampened sheet of stringy bark from a smouldering fire that carries the scent of the bush.
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A day in the life of a cruise ship
06 Dec 2012
Like nocturnal animals, they come home as dawn breaks, find their haven to sit out the heat of the day, and then head back out as the day cools into the evening. That’s one day’s pattern in the life of a cruise ship that comes to Sydney.
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Walking in Hall’s footsteps
30 Nov 2012
Ever since the museum joined Flickr Commons in 2008, we have gleaned a wealth of invaluable information related to photographic items from the collection. Flickr users have scanned images noticing the tiniest details, such as barely discernible ship names and locations.
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