HISTORIC WRECK OBJECTS SURFACE

The   weekend  sale  on  Magnetic Island   of  the  contents  of    the  home and art gallery of    maritime    archeologist  the  late Vivienne Moran   included  items related to expeditions to the site  of  HMS  Pandora , sent out to search for the Bounty mutineers, which struck   the   Great Barrier Reef in 1791 and  sank  with the loss of 35 lives. 

Vivienne  , who once  managed the  Townsville Maritime Musuem ,  had dived on the  wreck of the Pandora   on three occasions and played  a part in the setting up of the Pandora exhibition  at  the  Museum of Tropical  Queensland .

It is understood the  Pandora   material  which  included   shirts  and  mugs  bearing the names of sponsors  of  dive  expeditions , even  King Gee overalls  ,  will go to the   Museum  of  Tropical  Queensland , as will   some  of  her  library  covering  shipwrecks.

Proceeds from the  Moran  weekend sale  , so far about  $4000, will go to cancer research and State  Emergency Services, of which Vivienne was  an active member. 

A short time before Vivienne  died, she supported the  suggestion that  Magnetic Island  should hold a  Mermaid  Art Festival-inspired by the  fibreglass  mermaid  that  mysteriously appeared on rocks  at the entrance to the safe harbour , and was subsequently mutilated. 

Little Darwin, especially the Shipping Reporter,  covered the  mermaid extensively .

FAMILY OUTING ON GREY DAY

 

Vallis.

INSIDE THE CONSERVATORY

 

TOADSTOOLS ON THE MARCH

 All  the  rain and  humid, hot weather has   producd a  large crop  of   toadstools .

 

Full frontal fungi photos picked by Vallis.

MONA LISA LOST !

 

During Little Darwin's  move  from Magnetic Island  to a new  , smaller den  , which resulted in the  culling of many books, our  framed  picture  of  Mona  Lisa  went  astray. 

A search  of  paintings and pictures stacked against  walls and in cupboards  failed to find  this  famous ,priceless  work of  art  , bought at a  garage sale..  A visiting Darwin artist joined in the frantic  search and found  Mona Lisa in  a most undignified postion - flat on her  back, in  a  cardboard storage  box  ,underneath  this   writer's bed , along  with  other  boxes  of  books and oddities.

Taken out, she was givn  air , dusted  and  placed at the entrance to  the  den. which  also is  a  cluttered  bedroom , sporting a  rare collection of Australian and New Zealand  pub  soda  siphons  and   two knitted   dolls  inspired  by  Magnetic Island's  mutilated  mermaid , plus other items from Tut's tomb.

NAVAL DROP OFF BERTH

Anchor from landing craft heavy HMAS Tarakan, built at Walker's shipyards ,  Maryborough , Queensland , in 1971 , on the Quayside Terminal and Wharf 10, Townsville.   Wharf  10  regularly used by RAN vessels including helicopter  landing  ships Canberra  and  Adelaide. Shipping Reporter pix.

CLOUDS ON CAIRNS FLIGHT

 

WET , GREEN TROPICS

 Aeronautical  Correspondent  Abra  captures   countryside  on  Cairns  to   Townsville  flight.

Landing  at  verdant  Townsville.

BUTTERFLY CARESS

Vallis.

 

CLOUD CANYON

Townsville  CBD.

 

RED DAWN

 The  Strand ,  Townsville , and  Magnetic  Island.

Abra series .

SHIPPING REPORTER FINDS TREASURE

 Due to his  failing eyesight, our waterfront roundsman, the only one north of  Sydney's Circular Quay, he  has  unexpectedly cornered  the  junk jewellery  market. While  tottering about a Townsville op shop looking for  jettisoned items  of  nautical interest, he espied  what he thought was a large container of old  buttons.

In bygone days ,  when he prowled about Port Adelaide , Semaphore and Largs Bay , he oft bought at garage sales and house clearances  tins  and  jars  of old buttons  cut off  shirts, coats,  jackets , dresses  which  sometimes  contained  an old  medal , medallion or badge  buried  deep  inside.

On spotting the Townsville  collection of  "buttons" it  was  hoped that  there might  be  a  hidden treasure  inside..

Surprise, surprise. Instead of  olde buttons ... it  was  31 sets  of  chunky earrings!

Some of them  are  displayed  above  against  a  Titanic  drink  coaster   to give the false impression  they  were  recovered from  the ill-fated ship and  therefore  worth  a  fortune.

It is suggested he should flog them off at the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras  and as genuine Taylor Swift  trinkets  to her fans unable  to  buy a  ticket to  any of  her concerts and then go on a  world luxury cruise with the  rest of  the  loot.

CASTLE HILL ART DECO ANGLES

Sara photo.

 

MAN WITH BEST FRIEND PLUS ROMPING STRAY IN SEASHORE FLOTSAM

Vallis.

WHAT NEXT ? -GHOST FOUND IN MULCH !

 Casper the friendly spook and startling new  other  stumpy apparitions  in  Anderson  Botanic  Gardens , Townsville. 

LAPPING WATERS

Townsville. Vallis 

BEACHCOMBERS

TALENTED CURLEWS MOVING / ASSANGE

Heading further north from Magnetic Island  are  the multi-skilled  co- directors of   Cranky Curlew Productions -Penelope Sheridan and George Hirst . Conservationists and    activists , their  films  have won severaal   awards . A  longtime  campaigner for the release of   Julian Assange , who once lived on the island,  Hirst  drew the following    cartoon  for the  Magnetinc Times newspaper, of which he was editor, when it was suggested a  monument  to the WiklLeaks  founder should  be  erected  on  Maggie..

             

George's widespread experience includes being an Information officer  for  the Nattional Gallery of Australia. In the l990s he was involved in a series of solo exhibitions , travelling and   teaching drawing and painting. He even coordinated  the art installations for  the    new Parlaiment House  in  Canberra.

At Townsville's Perc Tucker Regional Gallery he managed the collection  , curated and installed local and nationally touring exhibitions over seven years.

 Pen had  widespred  experience in  theatre  at the  Backpack Community Threatre  Company, Warrnambool,Victoria.   She also went to New York in  20ll and undertook an intensive  film editing course  at the  Edit Centre .

There she picked up an editing credit on Leah Meyerhoff's award winning, first narrative feature film, I believe in Unicorns, and on the documentary Best kept secret directed by Samantha Buck.  As a film editor, Penelope’s eye for detail and passion for the wide gamut of visual, written and performance-based creativity was finally rolled into one.

As Cranky Curlew much of their work has focused on environmental issues with global warming front and centre.  In 2014 Cranky Curlew created an art event to coincide with a world-wide day of action on climate change.

 They produced the, now viral, Heads in Sand event which inspired activists in Bondi to create an even bigger Heads in Sand to coincide with the G20 meetings.  Following suit, many locations around the world produced their own Heads in Sand events. In 2020 Cranky Curlew’s Heads in Sand image featured in Borat Subsequent Moviefilm.

Pen has worked in administration in several island medical centres and has a new position at Atherton. George is busy preparing the island home for sale before joining her .

NEW TROPICAL SNOW BUNNY TERRITORY

Low cloud  illusion of snow on  Magnetic Island .Sara photo.

BRISBANE RIVER BALLS UP

 All manner of things get washed down the Brisbane river  as has been the case after  recent    wild weather  in the Queensland  capital.

However, it is surprisng how many  balls   used in  various sports  come floating  down the  river with  assorted  other  debris. Tennis balls in particular  are  attracting much attention.

Members of the    Indooroopilly Canoe Club , who regularly paddle along the river , remove a lot  of  the  rubbish .

Next to a paddle , here are some of the items taken  from the river . On the left appears to be a  deflated soccer ball. Several tenniis balls are visible , a variety of plastic balls, plastic bottles, some  refundable.  A  Kookaburra  cricket  ball  in good condition  was  plucked  from the water, also a basketball .   

In the case of tennis balls, they are being  placed in a container and will be used  in a guess how many  are in  it  at  Christmas  under the heading Busting  Brisbane River's  Balls , part of a drive to help clean up  the waterway and  draw  the  Brisbane  City Council's attention to  the  situation.

DANCING STUMP AT THE FOLIES

Vallis.

 

PRODUCTIVE NORTH AUSTRALIAN WRITER

Recent items obtained by this blog highlight the    prodigious output of  journalist, author , publisher , historian , artist , the late Glenville Pike ,above . From  Darwin , where  Pike  once  lived,  came   a NORTHERN BOOKNEWS  bulletin  put out  by his  publishing company, Pinevale Publications, Mareeba, North  Queensland..

  Of  the  l5 volumes offered  ,covering Northern Territory and North Queensland pioneering, brave Aborigines and  gold mining , most were mainly written or edited by Glenville Pike. In addition , historic maps of the Territory and North Queensland   were  for  sale.

The Grand Old Lady of the Territory, by Janet Dickinson, edited by Pike, was  the  biography  of  poetess, journalist and activist Jessie  Litchfield, who ran the Roberta Library, Darwin. She backed Pike financially when he launched the North Austraiian  Monthly  magazine--printed in Townsville at one stage-- and was its Darwin correspondent.

In  the following  well researched book, found in Townsville,there is mention of miner Harold Nelson who  went to the  Norhern Territory, became a union activist  and  the Territory's first Member of the House of Representatives.

His son, Jock,  owned the Alice Springs  Centralian  Advocate newspaper, became Administrator of  the NT  and was closely associated  with crusading editor Big Jim Bowditch of the Northern Territory News.

                                

UPCOMING :  More  Pike  specials, his treasure chest  and  talented  mother..:

MEDICAL SPASMS

 Unhealthy looking, grimacing  tree stump  with  an  obvious acute  digestive  tract problem  in  the hot Townsville University Hospital  carpark  and   a  resident   scrub  turkey  registrar   munching   on  a  foodpack  left  behind  by  a  visitor.