Royal Hobart Centenary Regatta 1938 : Tasmania Commemorates Franklin and Tasman
Date1938
Object number00000733
NameMedal
MediumMetal: Bronze
ClassificationsCoins and medals
DescriptionCommemorative medal depicting a map of Tasmania with inscription 'Royal Hobart Centenary Regatta 1938'. On the reverse are portraits of Sir John Franklin and Abel Tasman with inscription 'Tasmania Commemorates Franklin and Tasman'.
While NSW celebrated 150 years of settlement in 1938, Tasmania celebrated the centenary of the Hobart Regatta - just a few years after the King granted the prefix 'Royal' to the regatta in 1934. This is one of 10,000 medallion's issued by Stokes of Melbourne.HistoryRegattas were central to competitive boating in the 19th century and functioned as a social and sporting event, as well as a marker of official anniversaries in a public aquatic spectacle. Civic leaders, politicians and merchants offered patronage and sponsorship. This community regatta often featured several races, including rowing, sculling and sailing events usually for professional watermen and amateurs.
The Hobart Regatta was inaugurated in 1838, under the patronage of the Governor's wife, Lady Jane Franklin. Far more than just a yacht race, the regatta celebrated the anniversary of Abel Tasman's 'discovery' of the island in 1642. It demonstrated the patronage of civil and military elites and promoted the role of whaling and free-settler enterprises.
By the early 1900s 'the greatest aquatic carnival South of the line', had evolved as the 'perfect people's carnival'. Boat races competed with other novelty entertainments - fancy costume parades, bearded ladies, snake charmers.SignificanceThis medallion is representative of the profile of regattas in Tasmania in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and reflects their role as community celebrations and commemorations, in this case the European exploration of the island by Abel Tasman in 1642.
February 1938
