Fred & Myrtle’s Paua Shell House
by Emily Davies - June 24th, 2009. Filed under: Attraction, Culture, South Island.Last weekend, while exploring the Canterbury Museum in a bid to learn a little more about the early European settlers in Canterbury, we came across an iconic exhibition – Fred & Myrtle’s Paua Shell House. At first glance, we thought it was something for the kids, with a large paua shell in the entrance and music streaming from inside the house. However as we approached a little closer, a museum guide informed us that we were ‘just in time’ for the next show to begin. With no idea what we were about to watch, we headed inside to a small movie theatre and along with a few families, we sat in the dark and watched a short film about Fred and Myrtle and how they came to live in one of New Zealand’s most famous homes.
The house is a replica of the one lived in by Fred and Myrtle in Bluff until the 1990’s, and has been set up at the Canterbury Museum after becoming such a national treasure.
The short film informed us that kiwi couple, Fred and Myrtle had a fond passion for collecting paua shells. Living by the beach, Fred would often collect the shells and bring them home to Myrtle. One day, after Myrtle got so tired of picking them up off the floor, the couple decided to start nailing them to the walls in the house to make it easier when Myrtle came to vacuum the floor. What followed from this day forward was the creation of Bluff’s greatest tourist attraction.
As the collection grew, Fred and Myrtle were happy to open their home to share their shells with passing tourists and over the next 40 years, Fred and Myrtle Flutey showed around one million visitors through their home in Bluff, delighted to meet with people from all over the world and welcome them in to their home.
At the end of the film, you have the chance to walk in to the replica lounge and see the incredible exhibition. With over 4,000 shells displayed through the room, including paua shell clocks, telephones, frames and souvenirs, as well as photographs of the happy couple, you get a real sense of walking back in to grandma’s house. While it may not be to everyone’s taste, you have to admire Fred and Myrtle’s determination to create such a passionate collection and their generosity to share their home with the world.
The Canterbury Museum is open from 9:00am daily, with sessions at Fred and Myrtle’s house running throughout the day. Click here for more details.
