Artefacts & archives
Cliff Whiting Carving at Aoraki
The Department of Conservation (DOC) manages significant artefact and archive collections at some of its relatively remote Visitor Centres. An inheritance from earlier times when visitor centres were regarded as the local museum.
Donors who wanted local heritage to remain in the area offered DOC their artefacts and archives on that basis. Also, conservancy offices often keep artefacts and archival material where no suitable on-site repository is available. So, while DOC does not generally manage artefacts and archives as its core business, it does respect these agreements from earlier times.
DOC has adopted standards for the management of artefact and archive collections and implements these as funding permits. Similarly, funding realities limit public access to these collections to special projects. Some of the artefacts are used in interpretive displays in visitor centres. In the future, there may be opportunities for local volunteers to enhance collection management and local access.
Sites
These sites managed by DOC have significant artefact and archive collections:
Northland
Auckland
East Coast/Hawke's Bay
Tongariro/Taupo
Wanganui
Wellington
- Matiu/Somes Island Field Centre, 1870s onwards
Canterbury
West Coast
Southland
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