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2001/24/3 Photograph, carte de visite, depicting gold miners recreating the discovery of the 'Welcome Stranger' gold nugget, paper, photograph by William Parker, possibly Dunolly, Victoria, Australia, 1869. Click to enlarge.

Carte de visite photograph of gold miners with nugget

Made
This photo, recreating the discovery of the famous 'Welcome Stranger' gold nugget, was taken in 1869 by William Parker, a photographer from the Victorian gold-mining town of Dunolly. The nugget was discovered by prospectors, John Deason and Richard Oates, on 5 February 1869 at Moliagul, Victoria, not far from Dunolly. At 210 pounds in weight, it was then the world's largest alluvial gold nugget ever found. Located at the base of a tree with roots growing around it, some of the roots can be …

Summary

Object No.

2001/24/3

Object Statement

Photograph, carte de visite, depicting gold miners recreating the discovery of the 'Welcome Stranger' gold nugget, paper, photograph by William Parker, possibly Dunolly, Victoria, Australia, 1869

Physical Description

A carte-de-visite print which is glued to a rectangular piece of cardboard. It depicts two miners standing with picks on either side of a huge nugget. A smartly dressed woman is kneeling behind the nugget. The nugget has been coloured in gold. Written in ink under the nugget is the inscription '210 lbs'. Further details are written on the side and base of the card. Most are unreadable except 'W.Parkes Artist'. On the reverse is stamped the inscription: 'PRESENTED BY -.W. DUNCAN, 'GLENHOPE', Sth. LOCKWOOD.' Written in ink underneath is the inscription 'Apr.1921'.

Marks

Inscription on recto, handwritten in ink 'W. Parker' and '210 lbs'

Note on back of photograph, typewritten in black 'PRESENTED BY / (illeg.) . W. DUNCAN, "GLENHOPE", / Sth. LOCKWOOD.'

Date underneath note on back of photograph, handwritten in black ink 'Apl. 1921 / (underline)'

Dimensions

Height

104 mm

Width

67 mm

Production

Notes

Photographers were common on the goldfields, ready to record success or simply produce a reminder of husbands and sons for loved ones left behind. This photograph would have been taken by a professional photographer, either with his own studio in the town or with a travelling darkroom.

History

Notes

The reverse of the photograph is stamped with the name of the donor: '-. W. Duncan, 'Glenhope', Sth. Lockwood' and the date when presumably it was donated to the Royal Australian Historical Society, April 1921.

Source

Credit Line

Gift of the Royal Australian Historical Society, 1981

Acquisition Date

7 March 2001

Cite this Object

Harvard

Carte de visite photograph of gold miners with nugget 2023, Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, accessed 30 May 2023, <https://ma.as/9956>

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://ma.as/9956 |title=Carte de visite photograph of gold miners with nugget |author=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences |access-date=30 May 2023 |publisher=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, Australia}}