Living in Germany in 2015, I learnt of naturalist Amalie Dietrich who collected irreplaceable type-specimens of Queensland plants from 1863-71. Researching in German museums, I discovered extensive collections of Dietrich’s samples. Hidden archives are given visibility in this work but the metadata is erased. Museological system values that allow Western scientific knowledge to problematically dominate alternative understandings of Australia’s unique biodiversity, including indigenous ones, are disrupted.