C1888

Scene of the Boyd Massacre.

Scarce, c.19th hand coloured engraving depicting where the Boyd massacre occurred. In December 1809, the ship Boyd anchored in Whangaroa Harbour to load a cargo of kauri spars, an arrival that culminated in a violent act of utu (retaliation) by … Read Full Description

$A 55

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S/N: PAA-NZ-3535B–225446
(C032)
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Details

Full Title:

Scene of the Boyd Massacre.

Date:

C1888

Condition:

In good condition.

Technique:

Hand coloured engraving.

Image Size: 

125mm 
x 115mm

Paper Size: 

141mm 
x 133mm
AUTHENTICITY
Scene of the Boyd Massacre. - Antique View from 1888

Genuine antique
dated:

1888

Description:

Scarce, c.19th hand coloured engraving depicting where the Boyd massacre occurred.

In December 1809, the ship Boyd anchored in Whangaroa Harbour to load a cargo of kauri spars, an arrival that culminated in a violent act of utu (retaliation) by the local Ngāti Uru people following the flogging and mistreatment of the young chief Te Ara. The massacre began when Captain John Thompson and a shore party were lured to the Kaeo River under the pretext of searching for timber, where they were killed and eaten by their attackers. Warriors subsequently returned to the ship some disguised in the clothing of the deceased sailors to slaughter and consume the remaining passengers and crew, including a second mate who was briefly spared to manufacture fishhooks before being killed for his lack of skill. Following the slaughter, the vessel was towed toward a Māori village and grounded on mudflats near Motu Wai (Red Island), where it eventually exploded and burned.

References:
Ferguson, J. A. Bibliography of Australia Volumes 1-8, Canberra 1976 : 9829g.
Hughes-d’Aeth, T. Paper Nation : The Story of the Picturesque Atlas of Australia. Melbourne 2001 :.

Collections:
National Library Australia: Bib ID 1654251
National Gallery Australia: LEGACY ID 34588
Royal Collection Trust UK: RCIN 1046852
Getty Museum Los Angeles: Object name: 1218593
State Library New South Wales: RECORD IDENTIFIER 74VvDRQZXzWd
State Library Victoria: CCF 919.4 G19

Frederic B. Schell (1838 - 1900)

Schell was an American employed as the senior artist on the most ambitious colonial publication ever attempetd, The Picturesque Atlas of Australasia. He arrived in Sydney with two other American artists, W.T. Smedley and W. C. Fitler, plus a number of engravers including Horace Baker. When Phil May returned to England in 1888 Schell accompanied him. The Grafton Gallery 'Exhibition of Australian Art in London’ 1898 included F.B. Schell, cat.250, 'Junction of the Murray and Darling Rivers, N.S.W.’, cat.254, 'Hamilton Reach, Brisbane’, cat. 255, 'Sydney Harbour, N.S.W.’, lent by the Trustees of Sydney Gallery. He is represented in a number of institutional collections.

View other items by Frederic B. Schell

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