Archive for the 'News' Category

Old things in new ways…

Published by Rebecca Evans 4 Comments Tags: Doulton & Co., Farm Cove, Fort Denison, Garden Palace, Government house.

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)

Looking at old things in new ways is one of the Museum’s best talents.

Recently while Conservation Photographer, Kate Pollard and I were photographing this beautiful Doulton vase from 1882 we quickly realised that it had a fantastic painting of Farm Cove and the Garden Palace from the same period. When looking at the vase though you can only really see a section of the painting at a time.

If we could see the whole image, all at the same time, it would make so much more sense, and I was positive that you would be able to see more of the details of the painting.

So our bright photographer, Kate pulled out one of her home made contraptions that she had previously used at the State Library that would enable her to take lots of shots of the vase as it turned slowly around at exactly the same interval each time. The result was seventy odd photographs of the vase which Kate was then able to put onto Photoshop to merge and stretch the images so that they looked like one long panorama.

Impressed with Kate’s work I was able to look at the painted image in a completely new light, we realised that the turrets of a building were not in fact Government House but Fort Denison and could see that the people were walking along the Mrs Macquarie Road side of Farm Cove.

Doulton Vase (2000/138/1)

Doulton Vase Panorama (2000/138/1)

Context is everything when looking at historical objects and by digitally manipulating the painted image on this vase into a panorama we can see so much more, we see how everything fits within the surroundings.

We are hoping to do more of these manipulations in the future, so keep posted and if you have any suggestions of objects from our collection that would benefit from this type of manipulation, just let us know.

Rebecca Evans, Assistant Registrar

Happy Friday the 13th!

Published by Erika Dicker 3 Comments Tags: ambulance, bad luck, black cats, friday 13th, good luck, superstition.

jbo c1 013
Unlucky Friday the 13th is apparently the most popular superstition in the world. I, for one, do not have supersititious beliefs, I open umbrellas inside, I like black cats, and I confidently walk under ladders. If you do fear Friday the 13th you have a paraskevidekatriaphobia, and I suggest you cease reading this post immediately.

I dedicate this post to all our readers, may you have an unremarkable Friday the 13th! Here are some superstitious things from our collection:

00206773 Toy cat from the Jandaschewsky collection

Superstition: If a black cat walks towards you it brings good luck, if it walks away from you it takes your luck away.

00572622 NSW ambulance service ambulance.

Superstition: Seeing an ambulance is bad luck unless you pinch your nose or hold your breathe until you see a black or brown dog.

00526605 Anatomical model of the human ear.

Superstition: If your right ear itches someone is speaking well of you, if your left ear itches someone is speaking ill of you.

00x07425 Tailor’s scissors

Superstition: If you drop a pair of scissors it means your lover is being unfaithful to you.

2001.125.1-5 Pencil from the Collard and Collard Collection

(This one is dedicated to all those students sitting their HSC exams at the moment)
Superstition: Use the same pencil to take a test that you used for studying as the pencil remembers the answers!

Do you have any little quirks when Friday the 13th comes around? Avoid cracks in the pavement? Throw salt over your shoulder? I want to hear some whacky ones!

On loan from the Smithsonian

Published by Kerrie Dougherty 0 Comments Tags: allan lawrie, apollo, F-1 rocket, nasa, Rockets, saturn, Saturn V, smithsonian, space.

Curators at the Powerhouse not only research information about the artefacts in our own collection, from time to time we assist external colleagues with their object research as well. Satellite propulsion engineer Alan Lawrie, author of histories of the Saturn V and Saturn I rockets, contacted the museum seeking information about the F-1 rocket motor in the Space exhibition. Together with former employees of the Rocketdyne company, which manufactured the F-1, Alan has been researching the location and identification of all the surviving F-1 rocket engines.

The most powerful single chamber liquid fuel rocket engine so far put into service, five F-1 motors were used in the first stage of the Saturn V rocket that launched the Apollo missions to the Moon. The only example on public display outside the United States, the museum’s F-1 is on long term loan from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.

Unfortunately, the Smithsonian’s records had very little information about the history of this rocket motor and had incorrectly recorded its serial number, making it difficult for Alan to trace the story of this particular engine. Despite the difficulty of accessing the suspended engine, we were able to arrange for photos of the motor’s makers plate, which allowed for the correct identification of its serial number. This enabled a search of the surviving Rocketdyne records to establish the engine’s history.

We now know that the F-1 rocket motor in the Space exhibition was the 25th of 114 research and development F-1 engines produced by Rocketdyne and that it was probably manufactured in 1961. It was test fired 35 times.

The Berlin Wall- 20 years on

Published by Erika Dicker 1 Comment

“This ninth of November is a historic day.” East Germany “has announced that, starting immediately, its borders are open to everyone.”

Today marks 20 years that have passed since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the ‘Iron Curtain’ separating East and West Berlin, Germany.

This is an actual piece of the wall, collected in Germany by our very own curator Peter Cox whilst on holiday in the 1990s.

As many of you know, Peter is busy getting ready to open our 80s exhibition in a few weeks, and this piece of the wall will be one of the more serious objects to sit amongst the hypercolour t-shirts, cabbage patch dolls, and fluoro leg warmers!

Saddling up with Gucci

Published by Lynne McNairn 0 Comments Tags: fashion, gucci, horse racing, melbourne cup.

Horse racing and fashion have always been closely associated and with Melbourne Cup upon us I had a look for “Horse Racing Fashion” in our databaase. One item is this bright floral dress made by Gucci around 1970. Gucci had a strong association with horses, starting out as he did with a small family owned saddlery shop.

Guccio Gucci (1881-1953), began his career in 1920 when he opened a saddlery business in Florence, Italy. Using equestrian motifs as an inspiration, Guccio established the House of Gucci and opened his first fashion boutique in 1921. During his lifetime, Gucci introduced many of the designs for which the company has become known, such as the bamboo handle handbag and the suede moccasin with a metal bit. After his death in 1953, Gucci’s sons continued to expand the company overseas, using their father’s initials to establish the famous GG logo. Although now under the direction of new designers, The House of Gucci remains the best selling Italian brand, and certainly one of the most easily recognisable brands in the world.

You can really see the equestrian influence in the buttons which show not only the horse shoe but an accurate representation of a horse’s foot as well.

Horse hoof button

Lynne McNairn
Registrar

Movember

Published by Erika Dicker 3 Comments Tags: blades, depression, Lawrence Hargrave, moustache, movember, prostate cancer, razor.

Yes, it’s that time of year again…Movember! This annual charity event is responsible for handlebar and Fu Manchu moustaches around Australia, and indeed the world, each November. Originating in Melbourne in 2003, Movember aims to promote awareness and raises much-needed funds for men’s health issues, with a focus on prostate cancer and depression.

The first rule of Movember is to obviously begin the month with a clean-shaven face. One of the more interesting A-category objects in our collection comprises two folding cut-throat razors owned by John Fletcher Hargrave, father of aviation pioneer Lawrence Hargrave.
00537397 Photography Powerhouse Museum © all rights reserved

The blades are made from a section of recycled iron salvaged from one of the piles of old London Bridge, reputedly driven into the bed of the River Thames by King William Rufus in 1100. The use of iron shoes to manufacture items such as razor blades, tools and surgical instruments was quite common after the old London Bridge was demolished in 1830.

Given to J.F. Hargrave by his father at sixteen years of age, the razors are accompanied by a handmade silk bag and an envelope on which the provenance of the blades is handwritten.

The blades are significant due to their association with Lawrence Hargrave. The blades were passed to him upon his father’s death in 1885 and were kept in the family until they were kindly donated to the Powerhouse Museum by Mrs Helen Gray, Lawrence’s eldest daughter, in 1963.

So, at the end of the month when the Man of Movember has been crowned and the Tom Selleck wannabes go home, I’m sure a set like this will come in handy.

Kate Scott
Registrar

Sydney International Exhibition 1879

Published by Geoff Barker 0 Comments Tags: 1879 exhibition, Sydney.

Statue of Queen Victoria by Marshall Wood in the Garden Palace, 1879-1880. Source Powerhouse Museum.

One hundred and thirty years ago, on the 17 September 1879, the Sydney International Exhibition opened the doors of its main building the ‘Garden Palace’. Like other international exhibitions held around the world it proved an enormous success, even though Australia was so isoolated from Europe and America.

The Commissioners of the Sydney Exhibition certainly felt it had “undoubtedly emphasized a new era in the history of the Colony, and projected the value of Australia on the minds of the inhabitants of those older countries”. But it was the 1,045,898 visitors that passed through its gates were perhaps the most eloquent testimony to its triumph.

Macquarie Street entrance to the Garden Palace, photographed by Messrs Richards and Company, 1879-1880. Source Powerhouse Museum.

The main feature of the Sydney exhibition was an ornate building, the ‘Garden Palace’, which was over 244 metres long and had a floor space of over 112,000 metres. Designed by the Colonial Architect James Barnet the building included 4.5 million feet of timber, 2.5 million bricks and 243 tons of galvanised corrugated iron; all of which was lost when the ‘Garden Palace’ was destroyed by fire in 1882.

This was also a devastating blow for the Powerhouse Museum, or the ‘Technological, Industrial and Sanitary Museum’ as it was then known, for the many of the exhibition objects had been earmarked as the first acquisitions for the new museum. Only a few items were rescued after the fire; a piece of molten glass and a piece of metal from the statue of Queen Victoria.

Molten metal shard from Queen Victoria's statue. Source Powerhouse Museum.

This catastrophic event only proved to be a stumbling block for the Museum’s curator, Joseph Maiden, who set about rebuilding the collections. Just over a year later, on 15 December 1883, the Technological Museum, with 5000 new objects, was opened to the public in the Sydney Domain’s Agricultural building, situated right next to the remains of the old ‘Garden Palace’.

Happy Wattle Day!

Published by Lynne McNairn 4 Comments Tags: sir henry parkes, wattle, wattle day.

When you live in the suburbs and make long journeys along bus lanes or railway lines its hard not to notice wattle in flower at this time of year. Wattle of course is our national flower and gave us our green and gold sporting colours.

September 1st is officially National Wattle Day and this made me look up Wattle in our collection database. One lovely object is a hand embroidered silk valance made by Isabella Murray. Isabella Murray was the daughter in law of Sir Henry Parkes (often called the Father of Federation).

The valance features sprays of a ferny leafed wattle. Flowers were a popular embroidery motif with the journal ‘Castner’s Monthly and Rural Australian’ advising in November 1886 that ‘flowers must be true to nature – in fact nature must be as carefully copied as possible’. Native plants often featured and in the lead up to Australia’s Federation in 1901 wattle was increasingly common”.

Isabella was not lucky in her marriage to Sir Henry’s youngest son Varney

The family was often short of money as Varney had a chequered career as an architect, politician and businessman. Although not a distinguished architect, his practice seems to have flourished in the early 1890s, when he designed the ‘Marble Bar’ for George Adams’ hotel in Pitt St and other buildings in the city. However he was extravagant, lost money in various unsuccessful ventures and was declared bankrupt in 1895.

Varney was notorious for his extra-marital affairs. Isabella left him to live in Edinburgh in 1899 and sought a divorce three years later. This was not granted and she returned to bring up her family alone, settling in the suburb of Waverley. A resourceful, independent woman, Isabella found employment and raised her three children frugally but successfully. She lived with her daughter Mary (even after Mary’s marriage) until her death in 1927”.

It is not known at what stage of her life Isabella made this valance but it is nice to think of her sitting her parlour stitching away and I’m sure she would have enjoyed making it.

The valance is currently on display at the Powerhouse Discovery Centre at Castle Hill

Lynne McNairn
Registrar

Atlassian come to perve

Published by Matthew Connell 1 Comment Tags: arithmometer, atlassian, cable, calculator, music box discs, nerds, NeXT cube, phonographs, telegraph, tote.

I love doing tours of our basement store but this one was especially gratifying. 24 programmers from Atlassian, the company that brings us Confluence and Jira amongst other programs, came to the museum for a bit of R and R.

They loved the tote (0ne of my personal favorites too!)

the first international telegraph cable, the slide rules, the Edison phonographs, the music box discs, and the Arithmometer (Which was the first commercial mechanical calculator in production for nearly 100 years)
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But what really set them off was the NeXT Cube, particulary the ports at the back.

It’s the true belivers who check out the connections at the back (while claiming “This is nerd porn!”)

Alastair Morrison

Published by Christina Sumner 1 Comment Tags: alastair morrison, buddhist, chine, figurine, Hedda Morrison, hindu, jain, photographs.

Jain shrine donated by Alastair Morrison

Alastair Morrison, Life Fellow and great friend of the Powerhouse Museum, passed away on Tuesday 4 August, aged 93. Alastair was one of the Museum’s most consistent and generous donors over a long period of time, in particular with gifts to the Asian collections and working closely with curator Claire Roberts.

Most notable among his many gifts was an extensive collection of wonderful photographs by his wife Hedda Morrison, including many of her original prints; these document Beijing (then Peking) and China in the 1930s and 40s as well as Sarawak in north west Borneo where Alastair and Hedda lived for 19 years, until moving to Canberra in the late 1960s. Alastair also donated two large collections of mostly Indian and Nepali bronze figurines reflecting the Hindu, Jain and Buddhist philosophies, many of which are now on display at the Powerhouse Discovery Centre. And, in the last few months, we received a superb collection of early Sukothai and Sawankhalok (Thai) and Annamese (Vietnamese) ceramics of the 1400s and 1500s, which curator Min-Jung Kim is now documenting for acquisition.

A collector all his life, Alastair was also a writer and a scholar and his gifts to the Museum were accompanied by a range of books from his extensive research library to ours. Although, sadly, I never met Hedda Morrison, I was fortunate to meet and talk with Alastair many times and will always remember in particular his great flair as a story teller and the tantalising glimpses he gave us of a long and interesting life well lived.

His full obituary can be read in the Sydney Morning Herald here.

Christina Sumner
Principal Curator Design & Society

Archive for the 'News' Category

Old things in new ways…

Happy Friday the 13th!

On loan from the Smithsonian

The Berlin Wall- 20 years on

Saddling up with Gucci

Movember

Sydney International Exhibition 1879

Happy Wattle Day!

Atlassian come to perve

Alastair Morrison

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