Laocoön and His Sons
Restored 19th-century plaster casts of three Greek statues—"The Dying Gaul", "Laocoön and His Sons", and "Discobolus"—emphasise the Greek Revival architecture of the building, and are considered "an acknowledgement of the historical importance of the arts and learning of classical antiquity to [New Zealand's] imported European culture". They are among 33 statues donated to the Museum in 1878 by a wealthy expatriate Aucklander, Thomas Russell.