Canterbury Museum, Christchurch

For other museums of this name, see Canterbury Museum.

Canterbury Museum
Canterbury Museum
General information
Type	Museum
Architectural style	Gothic Revival
Location	Christchurch, New Zealand
Address	Rolleston Avenue
Completed	1882
Inaugurated	1870 (first part of building)
Renovated	mid 1990s
Design and construction
Architect	Benjamin Mountfort
New Zealand Historic Places Trust - Category I
Designated:	25-Sep-1986
Reference #:	290

The Canterbury Museum is a museum located in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand in the city's Cultural Precinct.

The museum was established in 1867 and has since grown in size to encompass New Zealand's diverse natural and human heritage. The first director of the museum, Julius Haast, formed the basis of the museum's collection whereby through the process of "Exchanges, mainly of moa bones and bird skins, with overseas museums .... Haast ... form[ed] the basis of Canterbury Museum’s collection, and in his day it was probably the leading museum in the Southern Hemisphere." The Museum has become a widely-renowned and an internationally-visited institution.^{[citation needed]} The Museum has more than two million collection items and specialises in the stories of early Maori, European settlement and Antarctic exploration.^{[citation needed]}

The original building was first opened in 1870 to the specifications of the renowned architect Benjamin Mountfort and as such is one of a number of integral Gothic Revival public buildings in Christchurch, which were designed by Mountfort. The original museum was a single space of 21.3 m in length and 10.6 m in width and contained a gallery which was supported by kauri columns, much like the Victorian museums of the day. The exterior of the museum was constructed of grey basalt from the relatively nearby Halswell Quarry. There were further additions made to the museum following its inauguration in 1870 with the addition of a southern, two-storey wing in the Victorian Gothic style in 1872 and a substantial addition facing Rolleston Avenue in 1876. An internal courtyard of the museum was roofed in in 1882 following which, no further additions were made until 1958. In 1958 the Rolleston Avenue frontage of the museum was extended in addition to the creation of a new wing adjacent to Christ's College. A further extension to the museum, named the Roger Duff Wing, was opened in 1977 by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh and now houses the museum's Antarctic collection. Most recently, in 1995, a four-storey block was inaugurated as a part of the Museum's 125th Anniversary, it contains an Exhbitions Court. Finally, a significant restoration, refurbishment, upgrade and structural strengthening programme was realised in the mid-1990s. The building is registered as a "Historic Place - Category I " by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.

The museum sustained minor damage to its facade during the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake, but remains structurally sound. This incredible result can perhaps be attributed to the progressive strengthening and renovating of the buildings to earthquake standards between 1987 and 1995. An estimated 95% of the collections were unharmed. The statue of William Rolleston, located at the front of the museum, toppled off its plinth during the quake.

The museum reopened on 2 September 2011 following its closure.

Gallery

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  The building was designed by Benjamin Mountfort and completed in 1882.

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  Historic oblique view of the building.

External links

• Assorted Photographs of the Canterbury Museum
• Canterbury Museum website
• A History of the Canterbury Museum
• Christchurch City Libraries' Article on the Canterbury Museum