The Exhibition

Bennelong Point from Dawes point, c. 1814V1/1810/1

The Mari Nawi exhibition:

•celebrates the role of Aboriginals in early Australian maritime history

•focuses on Eora and Darug people from the Sydney area

•describes their journeys throughout Australia and the world

•focuses on the period from 1790-1855

Mari Nawi – Big CanoeThe Aboriginal bark canoe, or Nawi were:

•3-4 metres long and 1metre wide

•made from a single sheet of bark

•bent into shape over a fire

•usually taken from the stringybark or fir tree

•smaller then English boats which were called Mari Nawi or ‘big canoe’

Aboriginal man and woman in canoe, 18022002.51

Replica - traditional Aboriginal NAWI.

Sailing into History

Biddy Salamander of the Broken bay Tribe, Balkabra Chief of Botany, Gooseberry Queen of Bungaree PXA 615/6

•Aboriginals worked as guides, boatmen, sailors, whalers and trackers

•Bundle was the first Aboriginal Australian to sail beyond the horizon

•Others, including Bennelong and Salamander followed in his footsteps

•Their travels included England, Vancouver, United States, India and New Ireland

Bungaree (c. 1775-1830) Bungaree:

•was the first Australian to circumnavigate Australia with Matthew Flinders

•was an excellent fisherman and ‘go-between’

•also assisted capturing runaway convicts

•convicts later took revenge by killing his Father

Bungaree, 1826NK 118, nla.an-2256865

National Library of Australia

Explorers – Galmarra

Jackey Jackey [Galmarra] PXA 615.

Galmarra or ‘Jacky-Jacky’:

•joined the explorer Edmund Kennedy and attempted

to traverse Cape York Peninsula in 1848

•risked his life to bury Kennedy when hostile Aboriginals speared him at Escape River

•struggled for over 120 kilometres to safety

•was rewarded with a silver breastplate and £20

Exiles – Musquito (c. 1780-1825)

Mousqueda ou Mousquita, 180220039.1

Musquito:

•participated in raids on settlers houses

•was captured by local Aboriginals and gaoled

•was transported to Van Diemen’s land in 1813

•was promised to be returned home, but this never eventuated

•later led further attacks against settlers

•was captured and hanged in Hobart in 1825

Bibliography

ImagesBungaree,a native of New South Wales, 1826Augustus Earle (1793-1838) Oil (reproduction)NK 118, nla.an-2256865National Library of Australia

Bennelong Point from Dawes point, c. 1814Attributed to John Eyre (b.1771) Watercolour on cardV1/1810/1State Library of NSW

Aboriginal man and woman in canoe, 1802Nicholas-Martin Petit (1777-1804) Pencil, charcoal and ink (reproduction)ref: 2002.51Museum d’Histoire Naturelle, Le Havre, France

Mousqueda ou Mousquita, 1802Nicholas-Martin Petit (1777-1804) Pastel, charcoal, pencil and ink (reproduction)Ref: 20039.1Museum d’histoire Naturelle, Le Haver, France

Jackey Jackey [Galmarra] Expedition of Kennedy, March 16th 1849. Charles Rodius Lithograph PXA 615 f.38

Natives of New South Wales Biddy Salamander of the Broken bay Tribe, Balkabra Chief of Botany,Gooseberry Queen of Bungaree Charles Rodius (1802-1860) Watercolour Ref: PXA 615/6

Digital Sourceswww.sl.nsw.gov.au

BooksSmith, K.V. 2010. Mari Nawi Aboriginal Odysseys. Rosenberg Publishing, Sydney.