Artifacts

The Vancouver Maritime Museum houses a world-class collection of maritime artifacts.

As the primary local repository for maritime history, the Vancouver Maritime Museum houses over 15,000 artifacts either in storage or on display. The collection has been built principally by artifact donations from the community.

Our holdings reflect the maritime history and heritage of Vancouver, the Pacific Northwest and the Arctic, and the collection represents European, Asian, North American and Indigenous sources. We strive to represent these communities and their connections to the sea through the acquisition of cultural and scientific objects relating to countries on the Pacific and the Arctic Oceans.

Artifacts within the collection relate to:

Maritime technologies
Model making
The Royal Canadian Navy
Marine art
Arctic art and culture
Coastal trade and leisure
Immigration

How Do I Donate an Artifact to the Museum?

Thank you for your interest in donating to the museum. Our approach to the donation of artifacts is guided by the mission and mandate of the Vancouver Maritime Museum Society.

When we accept donations of artifacts, we make a commitment to care for the donation. Because we take our commitment seriously and our resources are finite, we are unable to accept all artifacts we are offered. We have a formal process for determining whether material is a good fit for our collection. That process starts with you contacting the curator and describing the item(s) you wish to donate.

Email curator@vanmaritime.com