The National Library in Wellington has reopened following a three year $65 million refurbishment.
The project has involved renovation of the building as well as the digitisation of the library's vast array of records.
National Librarian Bill McNaught says digitising the records involved more than 250,000 images, two million historical newspaper pages and thousands of hours of recordings which are now available online.
He says there is more space and better facilities in the building itself for researchers, students and visitors.
Mr McNaught expects visitor numbers will grow when the Treaty of Waitangi and other important founding documents are moved there next year.
Internal Affairs Minister Chris Tremain says the National Library records are valued at almost $1 billion and modernising the building has made its treasures much more accessible.
