The Golden Archipelago is the sixth studio album by American indie rock band Shearwater.

The first pressing of the CD includes a 50-page booklet with lyrics, as well as collected photographs from the "Golden Dossier," featuring images, maps and texts of island exploration themes.

[26] Some critics noted its softer sound, compared to the grandeur of previous albums like Rook and Palo Santo.

Allmusic compared it to 1970s Peter Gabriel and Pink Floyd's The Final Cut, saying it lacked many of Rook's "more muscular moments.

"[27] Music critics also lauded Shearwater's commitment to the album format in the age of MP3s, making a cohesive, conceptual work of progressive rock, rather than simply a collection of singles.