South Australian Museum - North Terrace, Adelaide, South Australia 5000

Researchers embark on amazing adventures across the world to discover and describe new species of fauna and their relationship with the environment, provide valuable advice to policymakers, lawyers and corporations, and act as custodians of the Museum's extensive national collections. Our scientists are world leaders in fields such as palaeontology, evolutionary biology, terrestrial invertebrates and mineralogy.

Each week, Unlocked brings you the hidden gems from the South Australian Museum. Be inspired as you unearth the secrets of science.

23 May 2013

The South Australian Museum's Curator of Foreign Ethnology Dr Barry Craig has been researching the Museum's Pacific collections since 1995. He is building a picture of life in the Pacific Islands during the late-19th and 20th centuries.

By locating objects in the cultural contexts from which they came, and through the life-histories of the people who collected these things, local and international visitors to the Museum, and other researchers, we can better appreciate Pacific Islands cultures and arrive at a richer understanding of human nature.

The South Australian Museum holds more than 17,000 items from the Pacific Islands, particularly from New Guinea, New Ireland, New Britain, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Fiji.

20 May 2013

This week across the globe, more than 30,000 museums in 100 countries celebrate International Museum Day. The May 18 event invites us to look more closely at what a museum is and why it plays an essential role in the community. The South Australian Museum exists to educate, create, inspire and entertain by discovering and showcasing the wisdom of the world around us to our local and international visitors.

This year's International Museum Day theme is Museums (Memory + Creativity) = Social Change. As an institution, we strive to apply knowledge in creative ways through innovative scientific research and inspiring programs for children. Our hope is to help create an intelligent and aware society, by igniting a passion in young minds for science and the natural world. We want them to carry this wonder throughout their lives, and at the most, become successors to our talented scientists. Through our many functions and services, we are able to create a safe and exciting place on North Terrace for visitors to discover the world. The Museum remains a solid part of Adelaide's artistic and scientific culture and wants to sustain an engaging array of exhibitions and activities for families.