Behind the scenes

Decorated initials — artworks in themselves — have a long history.

Darug people share a deeper story of Dyarubbin, the Hawkesbury River.

A behind the scenes look at the new podcast series exploring the last great influenza pandemic in 1919.

In 1770 the Gweagal people of Kamay (Botany Bay) discovered James Cook and the Endeavour. The Library’s new exhibition explores the eight days that followed.

The extraordinary events of the past few months are unprecedented in our lifetimes, but the response to the Covid-19 pandemic contains echoes of the 1918–19 influenza outbreak. The Library is one of many institutions following the lead of our forebears.

While the Nazis had conquered Western Europe in 1940 and threatened Britain’s very existence, the State Library had continued on much as it had before the war.

A vital public institution.

A major exhibition opening in July at the Library will celebrate UNESCO’s International Year of Indigenous Languages.

Sifting through the ‘glorious clutter’ of the Thompson family papers offers a sense of early Sydney life and insights into several significant local families.

We’ve almost doubled our gallery space to show more of the Library’s collection and give exhibition visitors a chance to make their own connections.

A compelling portrait of a young colonial woman has been given new life.