The Alexander Turnbull Library is a 'library within a library'. Established in 1920 after Alexander Horsburgh Turnbull gifted his collection to the nation in 1918, its collections and services are now housed within the National Library building.
The Turnbull Library collections are based on Turnbull's personal collection of books, manuscripts, photographs, paintings and sketches.
Over time the collections have been built through donation, bequest, legal deposit, and targeted purchasing to contain millions of items.
More about donations and bequests
Planned changes to collection access
The National Library of New Zealand and the Alexander Turnbull Library are getting ready to move to temporary premises while we redevelop the current building in Molesworth Street, Wellington.
Space for collections is fast running out, and there is an urgent need to address issues with infrastructure. The redeveloped Library will improve collection storage and conditions.
The National Library's building redevelopment means access to some collections will change over the coming relocation period.
Find out more about planned changes to collection access
Published research collections
Published collections of the Turnbull Library contain books, magazines and journals, pamphlets, newspapers, maps, music, websites, and other items that are published.
Cartographic Collection (maps)
New Zealand and Pacific Book Collection
New Zealand Serials Collection
New Zealand Music, Sound, Audio-visual
Printed Ephemera Collection (posters, advertisements, programmes etc)
Special Printed Collections (rare books and fine printed items)
Unpublished research collections
Collections of unpublished items, like original manuscripts, oral histories, photographs, paintings, drawings, prints, and cartoons, are organised by format.
- Archive of New Zealand Music
Drawings, Paintings and Prints
Access items in the collections
Search for descriptions of published items from the Turnbull Library collections, and some digital images of maps, using the National Library Catalogue.
Search for descriptions of unpublished and pictorial items from the Turnbull Library collections using TAPUHI.
Digital copies of selected items are also on the Library's online database of heritage images, Timeframes.
You can select material from the Turnbull Library collections for use in special areas of the building. Some collections can only be viewed by appointment. Original material in the collections cannot be borrowed.
For more information about accessing the collections go to the collection page in the A-Z listing.
Get help
The catalogues do not list all of the items in the Alexander Turnbull Library but you can get help from staff to find out what else we hold.
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