Herald 'suffrage' edition gifted to Te Papa

The cover of the special edition of the Herald published of September 19 last year. Photo / File

A special edition of the New Zealand Herald produced to commemorate the 125th anniversary of women's suffrage will be protected in perpetuity at Te Papa, the national museum in Wellington.

The Herald's owner, New Zealand Media and Entertainment, has agreed to gift the 19th September 2018 Suffrage 125 edition to Te Papa, along with a copy of the historic first photograph of New Zealand's three female prime ministers.

The donation also includes a copy of the special "Postcard Project" Suffrage Canvas magazine, which featured messages from prominent women from around New Zealand and the world, and the original postcards they sent to the New Zealand Herald.

Former PM Jenny Shipley, current PM Jacinda Ardern, and former PM Helen Clark appeared in the New Zealand Herald's women's suffrage 125th anniversary edition. Photo / Babiche Martens

Curator, New Zealand Histories and Cultures at Te Papa Katie Cooper, says the body of work created to commemorate the suffrage anniversary is an important addition to Te Papa's Suffrage 125 Collection.

"The fact that this edition was guest edited by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and includes the historic first photograph of prime ministers Ardern, Jenny Shipley and Helen Clark adds to its historical value. It also carries significant editorial content that both celebrates Suffrage 125 and challenges our perspectives on the progress we've made," says Cooper.

At the time of guest editing Suffrage 125 Prime Minister Ardern said: "I felt an enormous sense of responsibility to not only capture something of what a newspaper would look like if the stories and voices of women were heard on a more regular basis, but to highlight how, within the ordinary, sits the extraordinary."

Herald Premium Content Editor Miriyana Alexander worked with Ardern on the historic edition, which includes stories focused on 125 years of women's experience across all facets of Kiwi life.

"The Herald team is incredibly proud to have marked the Suffrage anniversary so comprehensively - and even prouder that our work will be held by Te Papa so that decades from now, Kiwis will have an understanding of how we lived and the issues facing Kiwi women."

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern checks over the New Zealand Herald 125 years of suffrage edition. Photo / Michael Craig

Herald Editor Murray Kirkness said the edition had pride of place as one of the Herald's most significant in its 150-year history.

"Everyone at the Herald who worked on Suffrage 125 should be very proud of the contribution they made to this great edition," says Kirkness.

The 19 September 2018 125 Suffrage Edition will be officially handed over to Te Papa at a ceremony in Auckland on Monday.