Pop-Up Gallery

Port Chalmers has a been host to a flourishing artist community over time. Port Chalmers Maritime Museum is delighted to now provide a designated pop-up gallery space to showcase works of our local artist community.

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New in Pop-Up Gallery: Shakelton's Aurora

Our latest exhibition tells the story of one of Port Chalmers most famous visiting ships: The SY Aurora.

The Aurora was used for the Ross Sea Party in Sir Ernest Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914–1917) and arrived in Port Chalmers, New Zealand, in a severely damaged state on 2 April 1916. 

The vessel's return to Port Chalmers marked a pivotal, albeit desperate, chapter in the "Heroic Age" of Antarctic exploration, with the ship, the crew, and the town of Port Chalmers playing a critical role in the final rescue of the Ross Sea party.

The exhibition runs until late April 2026.