Tate Museum

Meteorites and tektites

Meteorites are strange and beautiful visitors from outer space. The Tate Museum has an outstanding collection of meteorites and tektites from around the world, one of which on display is a 76.9 kg piece comprised of 96% iron.

Asteroids

Approximately 580 million years ago, an asteroid slammed into what is now South Australia’s Gawler Ranges, producing a crater up to 40 km wide that is now known as the Acraman Crater. This display tells the story of the catastrophic event with samples of the ejecta (pictured) now in sediments that became the Flinders Ranges and possibly ushered in the Ediacaran evolution.

Ediacara biota

Earth’s oldest known complex multicellular organisms are called Ediacara biota. The museum holds examples from the Flinders Ranges, some of which are up to 550 million years old. Discovered by Reg Sprigg, a former geology student of the University, they are the starting point of animal life on Earth.

The Spriggina floundersi sculpture (pictured) is outside the George Murray building opposite the Victoria Drive pedestrian lights.

Olympic Dam specimens

The ‘Broken Hill’ of the 21st century is Olympic Dam in mid-north South Australia. One of the world’s largest deposits of copper, gold and uranium, it also contains a significant amount of silver. The Museum has many interesting specimens from this giant ore body on display.

Broken Hill minerals

Broken Hill’s massive ore body, which formed about 1,800 million years ago, has proved to be among Earth’s largest silver-lead-zinc mineral deposits. The Museum’s collection features spectacular minerals from the region.

Glow-in-the-dark treasures

Fluorescent minerals show amazing and hidden properties under fluorescent light: press the button to reveal their full glory.

Newly discovered minerals

While good quality iron ore had been discovered in South Australia during the 1840s near Iron Knob, the Australian steel industry only began to flourish from 1915 in Newcastle with ore from the Iron Monarch mine. An incredible 164 different minerals, including six previously unclassified, have been identified from this deposit, with many represented in the museum’s collection.

Sir Douglas Mawson

Life as an Antarctic explorer in the early 20th century was a true test of endurance. On display are many geological and historical artefacts from Mawson’s expeditions including one of the original sledges. The collection was bequeathed to the University by Lady Mawson after her husband’s death in 1958. It was opened by Prime Minister Sir Robert Menzies on 15 April 1961.

Prof Ralph Tate

The museum is named after University of Adelaide scientist Ralph Tate who taught geology, palaeontology, botany and zoology. At just 35, he was the foundation Elder Professor of Natural Sciences from 1875 to 1901. He was a graduate from Cambridge University and a former Curator of the Museum of the Geological Society of London. The wooden plaque on display is a tribute by his former students.