Scale clockwork model of tug PARMELIA
Maker
Arthur Joel Cole
Dateafter 1955
Object number00019254
NameModel
MediumTimber, varnish, paint, brass, steel, nylon line
DimensionsOverall: 350 x 720 x 170 mm, 3 kg
ClassificationsModels
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from W A Cole
DescriptionThe Australian tug PARMELIA is depicted in this scale clockwork ship model.HistoryTug boats have played an active role on Sydney Harbour since shipping began to play a major role in the city's development. Initially most tugs were paddle steamers that operated as freelancers to gain work towing, salvaging and helping at ship scrapping.
PARMELIA (-ex DELAVAR) was a steam tug of 361 gross tonnes built by Scott & Sons, Bowling in 1939. It was owned by BP Kwinana and registered at Fremantle, Western Australia.
Many ferries and tugs on Sydney Harbour were named after ships from Australia's convict and colonial past. The original PARMELIA was a transport that brought the first settlers to the Swan River Colony in Western Australia in 1829.
The model was made by Arthur Cole, an ex serviceman in the British Royal Navy during the First World War. Cole emigrated to Australia in the early 1950s and made this model in the late 1950s after copying the drawings of the original vessel. The model has a clockwork mechanism as it was made to sail on ponds.SignificanceThis ship model is representative of PARMELIA and the role of tug boats in Australian trade.
