An apprehensive young woman is about to eat a mouthful of food.
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Fusion, feminism and food

Flavours that flipped Australian kitchens.

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Fusipala: a Tongan princess, a costume and a community that keeps her memory alive

Who was the princess behind the costume? 

A smiling woman
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Burlesque dancing and basket weaving: the incredible life of Aunty Veronica Barnett

Step into the adventurous past of one of the Melbourne Museum's public faces.

Black and white image of three men dressed as pigs standing on the back of a truck.
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10 peculiar and splendid masks

Masks might come to symbolise 2020. But they have a rich and often strange history. 

Portrait of a woman in a carpark wrapped in a possum skin cloak.
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The timeless and living art of possum skin cloaks

The First Peoples of south-eastern Australia have been making possum skin cloaks since time immemorial—today the practice is flourishing.  

Woman holding a small vial
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One Year On

One Year On – Stories of COVID-19 in Melbourne's Suburbs is a digital display that brings together a snapshot of stories collected across the suburbs of Melbourne in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Group, 2019
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Connected Bodies

Paul Stillen and Miso talk about their collaboration on the Documenting the Body exhibition at the Immigration Museum.

 Portrait of a woman in a Melbourne street
Visit Immigration Museum

Identity: Yours, mine, ours

What does it mean to belong and not belong in Australia? Through personal stories and compelling images, find connections with others and challenge the assumptions we make about each other every day.

External site

Origins

What are your origins? Where have Victorians come from? Why did they come? This website presents government census information on Victorian communities from 85 countries of origin.

River at sunset
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Discover Documentary: The Murray Explored Bioscan

Following in the footsteps of William Blandowski, the Museum's first curator.

Black and white family portrait
Visit Immigration Museum

Immigrant Stories

Everyone who immigrates has their own unique story to tell. Explore these stories – why they came, where they settled and how they made Victoria their new home.

Visit Immigration Museum

Journeys to Australia

Immigration is a vital feature of Australia's history and national identity. Celebrate the journeys that changed Australia forever.

Immigration Museum from Flinders Street in afternoon
Visit Immigration Museum

Customs House

Home of the Immigration Museum, explore the rich history of one of Melbourne's most important 19th century public buildings. 

garden
Visit Bunjilaka

The Plants of Milarri Garden

Milarri Garden, located within Bunjilaka Aboriginal Cultural Centre, is planted with native flora significant to the Aboriginal people of south-eastern Australia.

Exhibition entry with visitors looking at language map
Visit Bunjilaka

First Peoples

First Peoples tells the story of Aboriginal Victoria from the time of Creation to today. Explore the galleries within Bunjilaka Aboriginal Cultural Centre.

Cable Tram
Visit Melbourne Museum

Marvellous Melbourne

Melbourne is a young city by world standards, but it has layers of history. Discover how each era shaped the city we see today.

Group of women holding a protest banner
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History starts today

A new collection of banners from the 2017 Women's March on Melbourne has important historical links.

detail if a decorated boomerang
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Rare scene of first European contact

Provenance of carved boomerang uncovered.

colourful wing sculpture
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Bunjil's wings

A glimpse of First Peoples' multimedia installation.

Barramundi
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A treasure trove of freshwater fish biodiversity

The Kimberley region in Australia’s northwest is one our last great pristine unspoilt places, and a hotspot for species discovery.

Two people in a museum collection store looking at clothing
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Fashion Redux at Melbourne Museum

Major fashion names used the Museums State Collection, in collaboration with Melbourne Fashion Festival, to create a completely unique look.

Extended family standing around suitcase on Station Pier, under a large roofed structure. Two men, two women, two boys and two infant children. There is a large suitcase in the foreground with rugs strapped to the side. Cars are parked in the background.
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The journey to Station Pier

Melbourne’s heritage-listed Station Pier was Victoria’s most important arrival point for migrants. Find out why it plays such an important part in Melbourne’s migration history.

A young couple who look happy and in love.
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An underground affair

An anti-Vietnam war love story.

A football made of possum skins.
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10 treasures of Aussie Rules

And what they say about us.

A black and white photograph of a smiling young woman atop a horse.
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The hidden history of Aboriginal stockwoman

As told by a Koa stockwoman, mother and doctor of philosophy.

Two women in a vineyard holding a black and white photo.
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The Pizzini women and their ‘souls of steel’

How three generations of strong women helped build a wine and tourism dynasty

Group photograph of 21 men in uniform
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Uncovering the Exhibition Building's secret WWII stories

Untold war stories revealed.

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The resilience of Sallie Jones

The Victorian dairy farmer overcoming family tragedy, bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic.

A farmer nurses her toddler amid a paddock of chickens and pigs.
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Bright spots in dark times

Pork farm prospers amid COVID-19 lockdowns.

Woman reaching out and touching a bluestone wall
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Black Day, Sun Rises, Blood Runs

Stories of colonial violence in Victoria.

an elegant white bird wading in water
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Flight of fashion: when feathers were worth twice their weight in gold

The high price of feathered hats in the 1800s.

a painting of five women sitting around a round table stitching while a man sits at a piano to the left
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A discovery of stitches: needlework and 19th century girlhood

What can needlework samplers tell us about often forgotten figures from history?

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Unboxing the museum: Mirka Mora Collection

Mirka Mora was all about being herself, her fashion style, her artistic practice, her friendships and creative circles, and her food culture.

A striped Tasmanian Tiger looking off into the distance
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Lunar New Year: 10 Australian tigers

Think you know tigers? What about those found in Australia? 

a green reptile extends its tongue to catch an insect. a woman smiles in the background
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Forbidden objects in the museum's collection

What do a doll, religious text, gun, and surprised-looking cat have in common? 

A white cake with flowers and small figurines of a suited man and woman wearing a white dress
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A piece of Neighbours history that really takes the cake

Not just a legacy of Neighbours’ most famous episode, Scott and Charlene’s wedding cake has many layers of history.

Five women participating in a ceremony
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A Wurundjeri First Peoples coming of age ceremony revived

Meet the Djirri Djirri Wurundjeri Women's Dance Group, who are reconnecting to their cultural heritage and bringing the younger generations with them.

12 cartoon animals of the Chinese Zodiac
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Lunar New Year

This Lunar New Year, come for a tour of the Chinese Zodiac through the Museums Victoria collection.

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Significant Mi'kmaq regalia crosses oceans and time to return home after 150 years in Melbourne

A unique regalia from Canada has finally returned home, in a major international repatriation from Museums Victoria’s collection.

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This briefcase holds tiny art with big meaning

An artistic collaboration with refugees and asylum seekers, Attaché Case challenges Australia’s controversial migration policy.

the head of a Chinese dragon resting on a plinth
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Unravelling the tale of Melbourne's mystery Chinese dragon

Solving the mystery of Melbourne’s forgotten Chinese dragon with a dusty 120-year-old head, a rare photograph, and a determined historian.

the head of a Chinese dragon resting on a plinth
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神秘传说:墨尔本的中国龙

一位锲而不舍的历史学家,靠一个积满灰尘,120之久的龙头和一张罕见的照片,解开了墨尔本尘封已久的“联邦龙”之谜。

the head of a Chinese dragon resting on a plinth
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Tìm lời giải cho câu chuyện về con rồng Trung Hoa bí ẩn của Melbourne

Với cái đầu rồng phủ bụi và bức ảnh hiếm, nhà sử học quyết tâm giải đáp bí ẩn về con rồng Liên bang bị lãng quên của Melbourne.

Group of four men looking into a box with a carving in it.
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Baradine Repatriation of Carved Tree (Dendroglyph)

Carved burial tree returned to traditional owners.

A photo of the front of the Melbourne Museum
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Birthday honours: 21 of our favourite things about the Melbourne Museum

Fascinating facts about Melbourne’s favourite museum.

Basket, Binak, Healesville, Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia
Museums Victoria Collections

Basket, Binak, Healesville, Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia

Coiled basket, or binak, with oval base, possibly purchased from Coranderrk Aboriginal Station circa 1870s-1880s.

A black, red and white footy guernsey.
Museums Victoria Collections

Football jumper - Nicky Winmar, St Kilda, 1993

St Kilda Football Club jumper worn by Nicky Winmar during his celebrated stand against racism in sport in 1993.

Melbourne's Biggest Family Album collection
Museums Victoria Collections

Melbourne's Biggest Family Album collection

In 2006 over 1000 favourite photographs of Melbourne were collected from Melburnians' private albums.

Phar Lap collection
Museums Victoria Collections

Phar Lap collection

Over 350 items of racing equipment and memorabilia relating to champion racehorse Phar Lap.

Woven rectangle with two blue sections and central black section. Colourful figures, animals and text adorn pi
Museums Victoria Collections

The Federation Tapestry

Almost 41m long and 20,000 hours in the making, the tapestry marks the centenary of Australia's Federation.

Stool, Papua New Guinea
Museums Victoria Collections

Stool, Papua New Guinea

A stool made from a single piece of wood with a standing figure forming the back. 

Maori Feather cloak
Museums Victoria Collections

Maori Feather cloak

Kahuhuruhuru is the name for this type of cloak made of fine fibres made from flax or whitau.

Extinct mammal incisor with scratches.
Museums Victoria Collections

Diprotodon tooth

A tooth fossil showing markings which appear to be man-made.

Museums Victoria Collections

Indigenous Protest, Australian Bicentenary, 1988

 In 1988, the year of Australia's bicentenary, Indigenous peoples from across the nation converged on Sydney to protest the so-called "celebration of a nation". 

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