JWC1878

Title: Sketch by J. W. Curtis depicting two Aboriginal men holding paper yabbers

Description: Original title of this sketch is: "Arrival of blacks with flags of truce at Dagworth station, Queensland [picture] / J.W.C"

Subtype: Message stick accessory

URL institution: https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-135771812/view

URL source 1: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60096235

Notes: PIC Drawer 2081 #S1534 Darrel Lewis found this. DL wrote (25.03.2023): "My father's mother's father was James Waltham Curtis, a highly regarded artist in Melbourne in the late 1800s. He did landscapes, illustrations for newspapers and for a period was employed by Stanford of American university fame. Yesterday I was showing a friend my collection of copies of his artworks and came across the attached, which I'd completely forgotten was in the collection. It's highly unlikely the picture was an eyewitness account as there's no evidence James was ever on Dagworth station or in Queensland (he was mostly in Victoria, but did visit Tasmania, New Guinea, New Zealand and various pacific islands). I suspect it was done as a newspaper illustration. The caption doesn't really fit as the men are holding 'paper yabber', not a 'flag of truce', which more likely would be a green branch." The associated newspaper article is "THE BLACKS AT DAGWORTH STATION. QUEENSLAND." Illustrated Australian News (Melbourne, Vic. : 1876 - 1889) 23 January 1878: 10. Web. 27 Mar 2023 <http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article60096235>. PK: Part of the misunderstanding of the paper yabbers as flags of surrender may be premised on the fact that such objects, like message sticks on the end of a spear, where indeed intended to signal "I come in peace"

Media Files:

Data Entry: Piers Kelly