New Zealand Maritime Museum, Maritime museum in Waitematā, New Zealand
The New Zealand Maritime Museum is located at Hobson Wharf in Waitematā and displays boats, equipment, and stories spanning Pacific voyaging to modern times. Exhibitions cover everything from historic Polynesian navigation methods to contemporary maritime technology and competitive racing.
The museum opened in August 1993 at a cost of NZ$11.1 million, after the Auckland Maritime Society and former harbour board members began campaigning for a maritime museum in 1958. Plans for Hobson Wharf were announced in February 1989 and construction started in mid-1992. The building later won a 2010 Auckland Architecture Award.
The Māori name Hui Te Ananui a Tangaroa links maritime heritage with Tangaroa, the sea deity from Polynesian traditions. Visitors see how deeply the ocean connects to the identity and beliefs of the people here.
The entrance is in the 1920 Launchman's Building, a Category II heritage structure on Hobson Wharf beside Viaduct Basin and Princes Wharf. Heritage vessels are moored at the museum marina and sail on the Waitematā Harbour. Look for KZ1, the 1988 America's Cup yacht, outside the entrance.
KZ1, the yacht built for the 1988 America's Cup, stands outside the museum entrance; Fay Richwhite gifted it to the museum in 1990. Inside, NZL 32, which won the 1995 America's Cup, hangs suspended in the yachting exhibition.
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