Wallpaper

A wallpaper frieze
On display
Featured display

A Generous Gift: The John and Phyllis Murphy Collection

Our current library display features an array of colourful and evocative historical wallpapers from the John and Phyllis Murphy Collection

Tuesday 29 October
Phyllis Murphy in her East Malvern apartment, Melbourne, c1950
Wallpaper

Beyond the wallpaper: the life and work of Phyllis and John Murphy

A significant donation of more than 3,000 wallpaper samples to the Caroline Simpson Library reflects just one facet of the remarkable careers of Phyllis and John Murphy, partners in life, architecture and heritage conservation

Close-up of a wallpaper from the John and Phyllis Murphy collection, Museums Discovery Centre

Wall to wallpaper

A vast and invaluable collection in the Caroline Simpson Library

A wallpaper being prepared for digitisation, Museums Discovery Centre
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Wallpaper in the spotlight

Work has begun on documenting this valuable collection to ensure each design is preserved against the effects of time for future generations to enjoy

Acquisition of the John and Phyllis Murphy wallpaper collection
Wallpaper

Wall to wall: a marvellous wallpaper collection

A remarkable donation of over 3,000 wallpaper samples by John and Phyllis Murphy adds to our existing collection to form Australia’s largest repository of historic wallpapers

Composite image of a selection of 4 walpapers
Wallpaper

Mr Fox’s wallpapers

The digitisation of NSW school files at NSW State Archives has resulted in an unusual discovery: 19th-century wallpaper samples

Wallpaper fragment from a Pyrmont workers cottage, c1850
Wallpaper

Wallpaper ‘sandwich’ from Pyrmont

A ‘sandwich’ of many layers of wallpaper uncovered behind timber panelling has opened a small, colourful window into the popularity of wallpaper in mid 19th century Sydney

Space-age wallpaper
Wallpaper

Sci-fi wallpaper (and other designs for children)

We dug deep into our collections and found wonderfully whimsical wallpaper, designed for children’s bedroom walls

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Trainspotting wallpaper from Blackdown, Bathurst NSW

Although the railway did not officially arrive at the New South Wales town of Bathurst until 1876, at a nearby property, Blackdown, a virtual railway station had been created more than 20 years earlier