Entries by category: Rare documents / new acquisitions

Captain Cook relics and other extraordinary pieces from the State Library’s world-renowned collection are heading to Cobar and Bourke on 20 and 21 March as part of an exciting new initiative, Far Out! Treasures to the Bush. 

With the support of The Caledonia Foundation, the State Library is taking some of its most evocative original items relating to the British discovery and exploration of Australia to display in five remote regions of NSW this year, including Cobar and Bourke.

According to NSW State Librarian and Executive Director Alex Byrne, “The State Library is committed to connecting regional communities with the original documents of Australia. Thanks to The Caledonia Foundation, people living in the far west of NSW will be able to view the actual handwritten letters of Arthur Phillip and Mary Reibey, and others, for the very first time.”

Paul Brunton is available for interviews

See the full media release attached

NSW Arts Minister George Souris will unveil an extraordinary piece of Newcastle’s colonial history in a special event at Newcastle Art Gallery on Monday 20 February.

A previously unknown album of drawings from 1818, including landscapes and portraits of Aboriginal people from the Newcastle region, recently purchased by the State Library of NSW, will be displayed at Newcastle Art Gallery from 20 to 26 February.

“This remarkable album is a vital piece of colonial history for Newcastle and Australia, and I commend the State Library of NSW for securing it for the nation
after it was discovered in the back of a cupboard in Canada last year,” says Minister Souris.

“The album has a strong link to the people of Newcastle and the local Indigenous communities, so it is wonderful that local residents have been given the first opportunity to view it at the Newcastle Art Gallery.”

See full media release attached

The State Library of NSW sensationally purchased a major, previously unknown Australian artefact for CAD $1.8 million at auction in Canada at 3am this morning [17 October].

An album of approximately 35 watercolours of Sydney and regional NSW, portraits of Aborigines and natural history illustrations made in Newcastle in 1818 were recently discovered in the back of a cupboard in a deceased estate in London, Ontario.

“This remarkable album is a prime document about the settlement of Australia and is without a doubt the most significant pictorial artefact to have been made in colonial NSW during the 1810s,” says Richard Neville, Mitchell Librarian.

We’re absolutely thrilled to be bringing it home to Australia where it belongs,” says Mr Neville.

See full media release attached

Richard Neville is available for interviews