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Port-Jackson

11/17

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14732000Plan of Port JacksonThis is a precise plan of the English colony of Sydney, showing the surrounding bays. The key set in the medallion at the top lists the locations of the windmills, the governor’s house, the prison, hospital and cemetery etc. The medallion is surrounded by motifs of animals characteristic of this island-continent, notably a wombat, kangaroos, oppossums, an emu and black swans. It also shows weapons – spears and a shield – that also appear in other drawings in the collection of the Natural History Museum in Le Havre. Plan of Port Jackson (Sydney), C.-A. Lesueur, 1802Plan of Port JacksonThis is a precise plan of the English colony of Sydney, showing the surrounding bays. The key set...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition/public/multimedia/16074-2_det.jpg?itok=uRln6Lu6Muséum du Havre
16142000Drawings by the NativesThis etching uses motifs drawn in pencil by Aboriginal people who were probably asked to draw particular things. It shows silhouettes of fish and kangaroos, and various images of the ‘Blue Mountains god’. The Blue Mountains are west of Sydney. The ‘blue’ relates to the bluish fog due to the evaporation of oil from the eucalyptus leaves. ‘Drawings by the Natives’, taken for etchings by C.-A. Lesueur, 1804 Drawings by the NativesThis etching uses motifs drawn in pencil by Aboriginal people who were probably asked to draw...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition/public/multimedia/16054_det.jpg?itok=5fpJjga6Muséum du Havre
1000808A New-Holland man This man has body markings, the meanings of which aren’t given in the on-board journals of the savants on the expedition. It is known though that they are ritual body decorations related to the social and spiritual status of the individual. This is one that appears in the publication Account of the Voyage by the name Cou-rou-bari-gal. A New-Holland man (Australia), N.-M. Petit, 1801-1803A New-Holland man This man has body markings, the meanings of which aren’t given in the on-board journals of the...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition_portrait/public/multimedia/20038-3r_det.jpg?itok=4zMYcWxvMuséum du Havre
1000792A New-Holland manThis man is called Mousquéda or Mousquita, as annotated on the drawing. The meaning of his body decorations is not specified in the on-board journals of the savants on the expedition. This type of decoration could be to do with cultural dances. There are incisions on this drawing made by a stylus, no doubt for the purpose of making a reproduction of the drawing in another medium. A New-Holland man (Australia), N.-M. Petit, 1801-1803 A New-Holland manThis man is called Mousquéda or Mousquita, as annotated on the drawing. The meaning of his body...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition_portrait/public/multimedia/20039-1_det.jpg?itok=yPPsK97wMuséum du Havre
1000694A New-Holland woman The many annotations on this drawing, and the amendments to the image using white hightlight, are to do with the preparation of the etching of the work, which would be published in the Account of the Voyage. At the bottom right it reads ‘approved for engraving’, and is signed by Peron, Lesueur and Milbert. A New-Holland woman (Australia), N.-M. Petit, 1801-1803A New-Holland woman The many annotations on this drawing, and the amendments to the image using white hightlight, are...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition_portrait/public/multimedia/20036-1rest_det.jpg?itok=yspRPu8XMuséum du Havre
1000833A woman of New HollandThe three-quarter pose and the framing of the figure in the medallion shape were two frequently-used graphic techniques of the early 19th century. This drawing is the last stage before the etching is prepared for publication in the Account of the Voyage, so it has corrections handwritten as well as marked on the drawing. The approval to engrave is signed by Peron, Lesueur and Milbert. A woman of New Holland (Australia), N.-M. Petit, 1801-1803A woman of New HollandThe three-quarter pose and the framing of the figure in the medallion shape were two...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition_portrait/public/multimedia/20034-2_det.jpg?itok=APL7e-zQMuséum du Havre
12772000PlatypusThe platypus has characteristics of both mammals and birds. It lays eggs as well as suckles its young. It has fur but also a beak, and lives at once in water holes and on the river banks or lakesides. It was necessary to create a genus especially for them: the monotreme. The first platypus taken back to Europe was thought to be an artificial creation, a taxidermist’s joke. Platypus, C.-A. Lesueur, between 1804 and 1809PlatypusThe platypus has characteristics of both mammals and birds. It lays eggs as well as suckles its...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition/public/multimedia/80034-1_det.jpg?itok=Z5yay4JlMuséum du Havre
12462000Greater Glider, Petauroides volans This animal is called a ‘glider’ (and the species name means ‘flying’) because it can go from tree to tree with ease. Greater Glider, Petauroides volans (Kerr, 1792), C.-A. Lesueur, between 1804 and 1809Greater Glider, Petauroides volans This animal is called a ‘glider’ (and the species name means ‘flying’) because it can go...Zoom http://www.museum-lehavre.fr/sites/default/files/styles/exposition/public/multimedia/80089_det.jpg?itok=E0nTmcwjMuséum du Havre

At Port Jackson (Sydney), June-November 1802

On their arrival at Port Jackson, there were only four men on the Géographe who were capable of manoeuvring the ship, aided by English sailors who came aboard. The Naturaliste arrived eleven days later.

They were welcomed and assisted by Governor King, and the sick were able to get better. Both the savants and the officers noted in their journals the rapid prosperity of the colony, founded in 1788 by the British with convicts.

They stayed for five months. This stopover was during the Peace of Amiens, signed by France and England – a fragile and ephemeral peace that nonetheles soothed spirits.

They gathered a rich collection of specimens, particularly from Botany Bay north of Sydney. Peron and Lesueur filled thirty-three chests that were taken on board the Naturaliste when it left for France. It was then replaced by the corvette Casuarina, purchased at Port Jackson, the commander of which knew Louis Freycinet, an officer on the Naturaliste.

 

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