ResearchRangahau
Discover our ongoing, multidisciplinary programme of research, and find out how we can support you in your own investigations.
Our research experts work in five major curatorial areas, and aim to make their material accessible to everyone.

Art research
Find out about our various avenues of art research and who we are.

History research
Find out how we explore history through objects.

Natural History research
Find out about our natural history research and its wider impact in New Zealand.

Pacific Cultures research
We seek to understand the local and global histories of Pacific peoples, and to document these stories through our collection.

Mātauranga Māori research
Learn how we research Māori cultural treasures, knowledge, and customs.

Repatriation
In 2003, the government mandated Te Papa to develop a formal programme for the repatriation of Māori and Moriori ancestral remains from international institutions to iwi. Here you can learn about the repatriation process, see all the repatriations to date, and meet the team.

Researchers
Find out about our Researchers and their roles at Te Papa.

Te Papa audience research
In 2022 and 2023, Te Papa undertook research regarding usage and presentation of te reo Māori across various cultural websites, and exploring access to and consumption of museum content by Pacific Peoples.

Research publications
Access our research journal, Tuhinga, and other curatorial papers and books published by Te Papa.

Research topics on Collections Online
Dig deeper into Te Papa's research topics on Collections Online

Datasets
Te Papa releases these datasets openly to allow others to analyse and build on Te Papa’s research findings.

Research visits and collections access
Find out more about the research areas you can access, from collections and archives, to our library and DNA sampling.