The Watling collection

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"Mr. White, Harris and Laing with a party of Soldiers visiting Botany Bay Colebee at that place, when wounded"

Artist: Port Jackson Painter
Created: [ca.1790 or 1797?]
Dimensions: 26.6 x 42.8 cm
Reference: Watling Drawing - no. 25

 

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The drawing represents an encounter between British colonists and Australian Aborigines at Botany Bay. The scene is set in a landscape which is composed of washes of green overlaid with darker brush marks, with trees of various sizes including a large Gum tree on the extreme left and a number of grass trees of the Xanthorrhoea family. The sea is visible in the distance, and the sky occupies almost half of the composition. At the centre of the scene, the three Colonists named in the annotation, armed with muskets, approach a group of thirteen Aboriginal men, women and children who appear to be relaxing around a camp fire. The central Colonist is depicted using the stock of his musket to attract the attention an Aboriginal man who has his back to him and is apparently comforting a sick or injured companion. The colonists' dress is depicted in some detail, including breeches, colourful waistcoats, jackets, and hats with wide brims and tall crowns. To the right is a group of thirteen soldiers wearing red jackets, white breeches and black hats, standing to attention and shouldering weapons, arranged formally in two rows. At the extreme right of the composition, a single Aboriginal man is depicted in back view sitting on a log. The name "Colebee" is inscribed in pencil alongside him. The drawing is framed by a triple-banded ink border, and annotated in pencil within the composition and black and brown ink outside the border.

 

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