The National Library has a large collection of sculptures built into and around the building, and beautiful tapestries hanging in our foyer.

The Main Reading Room houses a collection of sculptures and paintings inspired by Indigenous stories of the Australian landscape.

The Special Collections Reading Room houses art relating to Australian history and culture in the post-colonial era, focusing on modern Australian people and places.

The National Library incorporates major works of art that have become closely associated with the building.

Module

This resource is aligned with the Australian Curriculum: Modern History for Senior Secondary students, with specific reference to content descriptions for Unit 2: Movements for Change in the 20th Century, and specifically those that fall under the examination of ‘Recognition and rights of Indigenous peoples’.

Topic

Mark McKenna is one of Australia’s leading historians, based at the University of Sydney.

Topic

Professor John Maynard is a Worimi man from the Port Stephens region of New South Wales.

Topic

Lieutenant James Cook’s 753-page account of the voyage of His Majesty’s Bark Endeavour (also known as HMS Endeavour) from 1768 to 1771 is the story of one of history’s greatest journeys of discovery.

Topic

Preserved in the National Library of Australia’s Manuscripts Collection, along with Cook’s handwritten journal, are another set of instructions.

Topic

James Cook’s famous Endeavour voyage was originally commissioned by the Royal Society of London as a scientific mission. When the Admiralty (Royal Navy) became aware that the Society was planning to commission a sea journey to the Southern Hemisphere to collect scientific data, its members saw an opportunity to become involved. However, their motivations were very different to those of the Royal Society.