Ngā taonga whakamīharo — he kōrero mō nga pūkete āniwaniwa
Wonderous treasures — a conversation about rainbow records
Listen to an interview with PrideNZ and learn more about archives related to rainbow communities in our holdings. We’ll also share highlights from digitised records discussed in the interview.
Rainbow records at Archives New Zealand
“There are treasures sitting within our holdings, and you don't know when you're going to come across them,” says former Senior Archivist Donal Raethel.
We care for over 7 million records here at Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga Archives New Zealand, and many of them are related to rainbow communities.
Read more about pride in the archives
Donal chatted with Gareth Watkins from PrideNZ about these ‘wonderous treasures’. In the interview, they discuss a variety of rainbow records, including:
drag performance within the second New Zealand Expeditionary Force during World War 2
homosexual law reform and civil union
censorship
Dr Hjelmar von Dannevill
Amy Bock
Charles Mackay.
Listen to the interview
You can listen to the kōrero (conversation) between Donal and Gareth on PrideNZ’s website. Here, you’ll also find a written summary and transcript of the interview.
View rainbow records online
Our digitisation project team, Te Maeatanga, made new records available online so you can view them without travelling to a reading room. We’ve shared some of the recently digitised items discussed in the interview on this page. You can also view them in full on Collections search using the links below.
Content warning
Some of our records contain language and attitudes now considered outdated or offensive. They reflect the era in which they were created and serve as a reminder of the evolving social landscape. They can be confronting and upsetting to some people and do not represent the values of Archives New Zealand.
Soldiers in drag
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![A person in drag.]()
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![2 people dressed in drag.]()
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![3 people in costume mid performance.]()
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![3 people in costume in the middle of a performance.]()
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Homosexual law reform newspaper clippings
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![Old newspaper clipping]()
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![Old newspaper clipping]()
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![Old newspaper clipping]()
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![Old newspaper clipping]()
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![Old newspaper clipping]()
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![A clipping of an old movie advertisement saying 'Naughty, Saucy Constance Talmadge in Mrs Leffingwell's boots' and 'A sumptuous scandal drama'.]()
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![Newspaper clipping of an old movie advertisement. Some of the text is underlined in red pen, including 'She was quite untroubled by what the world calls morality, and she had no scruples!']()
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![Old movie poster showing a woman standing on a table surrounded by men. The text says 'To the highest bidder!'.]()
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View the cinematography censorship records on Collections search
37th Parliament Privileges Committee files
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![Close up of a television interview transcript.]()
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![Passport photo of Carmen Rupe attached to application file.]()
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Read about Carmen Rupe's passport
Charles McKay in the New Zealand Police Gazette
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![Old black and white mug shots of a middle-aged man.]()
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![An illustration of Amy Bock dressed in a men's suit wearing a bowler hat and holding a pipe.]()
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Read more about Amy Bock on our Flickr
Justice and Electoral Committee Civil Union Bill submissions and reports
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![Photocopy of a document.]()
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![Photocopy of a document]()
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View the Justice and Electoral Committee Civil Union Bill reports on Collections search
Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa
This kōrero was inspired by a series of queer history tours delivered in collaboration with Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa (formerly Te Pūranga Takatāpui o Aotearoa, LAGANZ Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand). Donal is a long serving and valued member of LAGANZ.
The archive provides access to records and personal papers of LGBTTIFQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, takatāpui, fa'afafine, intersex and queer) people and organisations in Aotearoa New Zealand.