National Treasures from Australia's Great Libraries

A landmark exhibition that told a rich and remarkable story about our history, our nation, our treasures ... and our libraries.

National Treasures from Australia’s Great Libraries brought together, for the first time, more than 170 extraordinary items that shaped our nation. Drawn from the magnificent collections of Australia’s National, State and Territory libraries, the exhibition contained a diverse range of manuscripts, maps, drawings, paintings and objects—from the everyday to the exotic—all linked to Australia.

National Treasures from Australia’s Great Libraries included familiar icons such as Cook’s Endeavour Journal, Ned Kelly’s helmet and Donald Bradman’s favourite bat. 

Spanning the earliest European depiction of the Southern Cross drawn in the 16th Century, through our convict and colonial era, two world wars, recent innovations and our constant obsessions with sport, food and wine, it gave fresh insight into the diversity and breadth of our history and what it means to be Australian.

This exhibition was an initiative of the Council of Australian State Libraries (CASL) and was managed by the National Library of Australia. 

The items included on this website, are only those from the State Library of South Australia's collections.