Ethnography

Image 41 of 69
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"Native name Ben-nel-long, as painted when angry after Botany Bay Colebee was wounded"

Artist: Port Jackson Painter
Created: [1790 or 1797?]
Dimensions: 20.3 x 17.3 cm
Reference: Watling Drawing - no. 41

 

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  • Port Jackson Painter]
  • The drawing is inscribed in blue pencil at top right with the number "50", which refers to the pre-1984 numbering system for the Watling Collection.
  • The drawing is annotated in brown ink at bottom "Native name Ben-nel-long As painted when angry after Botany Bay Colebee was wounded."
  • The drawing is unsigned and undated.
  • Bennelong was captured by the British colonists in December 1789, in the hope that he could be trained to act as an intermediary between the colonists and the indigenous people. He left the colony for England with Governor Phillip in November 1792, returning to Sydney in 1795. (ref. Smith, Keith Vincent. Bennelong: the coming in of the Eora, Sydney Cove, 1788-1792. East Roseville NSW, Kangaroo Press, 2001.)
  • In Wheeler and Smith (eds.) (1988), R.J. Lampert suggests that the annotation on this drawing may refer to an incident that took place in December 1797 (p.25); Smith suggests an alternative event that took place in December 1790, possibly related to that depicted in Watling drawing number 25 (p.227-8).
  • The author of this catalogue record is Suzanne Stenning.
  • By permission of the trustees of the Natural History Museum (London).
  • Two sets of transparencies held in the Natural History Museum (London) Zoology Library and Picture Library: Picture Library order number 12041
  • James Lee of Kensington : purchased ; 1902
  • Data sheet available.
  • Wheeler, A. and Smith, B, (eds.) The Art of the First Fleet and other early Australian Drawings. New Haven and London, Yale University Press, 1988. (Plate 7, p. 25.)