Port Jackson Harbour, in New South Wales: with a distant view of the Blue Mountains
Artist
John Eyre
(British, 1771 - 1815)
Engraver
Walter Preston
(British, 1787 - 1820)
Date1814
Object number00000897
NamePrint
MediumInk on paper
DimensionsOverall: 228 x 310 mm
ClassificationsArt
Credit LineANMM Collection
DescriptionA hand coloured copper engraving depicting the view of Sydney, New South Wales, taken from Bell Mount (Vaucluse).
This engraving was published by James Whittle and Rich'd. Homes Laurie, 53 Fleet St. London, in 1814. It was based on an original watercolour by convict artist John Eyre and convict engraver Walter Preston.
HistoryA European settlement at Sydney Cove was established by Governor Arthur Phillip when he arrived with the First Fleet on 26 January 1788. The cove was named in honour of the British Home Secretary, Thomas Townsend, Lord Sydney and chosen as the site of settlement over Botany Bay because it offered both fresh water and a secure place for ships to anchor.
Phillip described Sydney Cove as having 'the best spring of water, and in which the ships can anchor so close to the shore that at a very small expense quays may be made at which the largest ships may unload'. He aimed to establish a flourishing colony not just a penal site and supported plans to build a structured orderly town plan.
Early development in the cove consisted of basic housing and some public buildings. Convicts lived in timber huts and tents prior to the construction of the Hyde Park Barracks in 1819. A stone quarry was established where the male convicts worked and a number of farming plots were cultivated.
Vaucluse is located on the southern headland into Port Jackson and the area was first utilised for the placement of navigational aids. In 1803, recently arrived convict Sir Henry Browne Hayes was given permission to buy the land from Thomas Laycock, who had be granted land in the area in 1793, and Robert Cardell who received land in 1795. The area derived its name from Vaucluse House, built by Hayes in 1805 and later bought and expanded by William Wentworth.SignificanceWith the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788 Sydney has continued to grow and develop into a vibrant city. This work documents the expansion of the town and the presence of the Indigenous population in the early 19th century.
William James Hall
1890s - 1930s
