As someone with a deep interest in the history of Chinese in Australia, the opportunity to explore the Golden Dragon Museum’s rich and extensive collection was a dream come true! I could have spent many, many months exploring the collection and assessing its significance but alas the scope of the project was not to allow this. In addition to spending time considering individual object I also reflected on the special significance of the Golden Dragon Museum to Chinese Australian communities around Australia and the important ways in which the Museum and its collection is tied to the local geography.

This Assessment was commissioned by Hugo Leschan, CEO of the Golden Dragon Museum with support from the Bendigo Bank Community Enterprise Foundation. It draws on the methodology outlined in Significance 2.0: A Guide to Assessing the Significance of Collections published by the Collections Council of Australia in 2009 and also guidelines provided by the National Library of Australia Community Heritage Grant program for Significance Assessments.

The Significance Assessment was launched by the Golden Dragon Museum on Friday, 20 August 2021 (https://www.bendigoadvertiser.com.au/story/7395236/council-invests-in-museum-as-collection-receives-statement-of-significance/) and has been published on their website (http://www.goldendragonmuseum.org/our-collection).