Donate
The Australian National Maritime Museum Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Australian National Maritime Museum.
The Foundation aims to ensure that the museum is a place for everyone to enjoy, share and learn about the stories that are significant to our past and that will influence our future.
We help the museum to achieve its priorities, especially around building and preserving the National Maritime Collection, telling stories about our migration history, furthering our understanding through maritime archaeology and highlighting the importance of Indigenous connections to our seas, rivers and waterways.
The Foundation is overseen by a board of directors, chaired by Mr Daniel Janes. Donations to the Foundation are tax deductible.
2025 End-of-Financial-Year Campaign
As the end of the financial year approaches, we invite you to support two special projects of importance to the Museum. This year, we are raising funds for:
- The conservation and exhibition of the historic vessel currently known as ‘Barangaroo Boat’
- The continued delivery of the ‘Museum in a Box’ outreach initiative to aged care communities
Join us on a journey of discovery
Unearthed during the construction of the new Barangaroo Metro Station, this is the oldest known colonial-built vessel ever found intact in Australia.
Now undergoing expert conservation at the Museum, this remarkable find offers a rare glimpse into our maritime past.
Once carefully restored and reassembled, the vessel will take pride of place as the centrepiece of a major new exhibition, uncovering untold stories of colonial Sydney, showcasing early boatbuilding craftsmanship, and tracing the extraordinary journey from buried relic to national treasure.
Museum in a Box
Our beloved Museum in a Box program brings the past to life for aged care residents and community groups across the country. Focusing on Australian beach culture from the 1940s to 1960s, the program uses original objects and audio stories to spark conversation, encourage connection, and celebrate the lived experiences and shared memories of those who remember the era.
Your Gift Keeps History Alive
Every donation - no matter the size - helps us preserve and share Australia’s rich maritime heritage in meaningful, memorable ways. Your tax-deductible gift directly supports projects like Barangaroo Boat and Museum in a Box, ensuring these powerful stories are not lost to time.
Different ways to donate
Australia's National Monument to Migration
You can honour a migrant – a loved one, a member of your family, yourself, or a new arrival – on Australia’s National Monument to Migration at the Australian National Maritime Museum.
A donation is a fitting way to honour loved ones who have migrated to Australia and to ensure their personal stories are held in this important national collection.
You can make a difference
The Australian National Maritime Museum Foundation
The foundation raises funds to support the acquisition of objects for the National Maritime Collection, to maintain the fleet of vessels and to enhance programs and activities. The stories of some of the objects acquired with support from the Foundation can be found here.
History of the foundation
The Australian National Maritime Museum Foundation was established in 2002, following a generous donation of plans, photographs and tools from the famed Halvorsen boatbuilding family.
