Manuscripts

  • Seven men painting in art studio

    An art studio at GCC (German Concentration Camp), New South Wales, c.1914-1919.  Part of the Ferguson Collection. Complete image available at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn3584291

  • Close up of journal page featuring coloured paint

    John Olsen (1928- ). Salute to Five bells : John Olsen's Opera House journal, 1971-1973.  Part of the John Olsen Papers. Complete image available at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn4561909

  • Close up of handwritten notebook

    William Bligh (1754-1817). Notebook and list of mutineers, 1789. Complete image available at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn801340

  • Cook's handwritten 1768 journal entry

    James Cook (1728-1779).  Journal of H.M.S. Endeavour, 1768-1771. Complete image available at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn3525402

  • Handwritten diary entry with a photo of a ship

    Frank Hurley (1885-1962).  Autograph rewritten from part of the diary kept on the British Australian and New Zealand Antarctic Expedition 1929 on which Frank Hurley was official photographer, c.1929.  Part of the Frank Hurley Papers. Complete image available at: http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/2247836

Manuscripts document the lives and activities of people and organisations, and are an important and much valued part of our collection. Manuscripts take many different forms and can include letters, diaries, book drafts, drawings, logbooks, and maps.

The collection’s greatest strength is the period from the Federation movement at the end of the nineteenth century continuing up to the present. However it also includes much material related to the Asia–Pacific region and the European discovery, exploration and settlement of Australia.

Highlights