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Object type
Anchors
Object number
1981.0024.0001
Description
A wrought iron, fisherman's style stream anchor from Matthew Flinders' ship, the "Investigator". The anchor has a long straight shank which has the remains of a ring at one end, and two curved arms at the other end. The surface of the anchor is corroded.
Collection name
Matthew Flinders collection
On 18 July 1801, Matthew Flinders, commander of H.M.S. Investigator, set sail to explore and to chart the Australian coastline. Returning via Timor down the West Australian coast, in a badly leaking vessel, and with a number of his crew suffering from dysentery and fever, Flinders stopped at Middle Island in the Recherche Archipelago on 17 May 1803, for the purposes of procuring geese, seal oil and salt for his ailing crew. According to research by Mr Robert Sexton, maritime historian of Adelaide, Flinders found, on his departure four days later, that a fresh breeze was driving the Investigator towards rocks before the sails had been loosened. Using the ships spare anchors to hold the ship off the rocks, Flinders cut the anchor cables as the ship departed, losing his bower anchor and stream anchor as a result. Instead of recovering the anchors, as was usual practice, Flinders left them to be picked up at a later date. In 1972, Doug Seton from the South Australian Museum organized an expedition with fellow members of the Underwater Explorers Club of South Australia to find and raise the two anchors, which were located in Goose Island Bay on 14th January 1973 by members of the Underwater Explorers Club of SA. This collection highlights one of the important voyages of discovery and the naming of Australia by Matthew Flinders. Flinders circumnavigated Australia and confirmed its island status after many years of conjecture and uncertainty.
ExplorerMaterials
Metal - non specific
Dimensions
Width: 1570mm
Height: 2500mm
Depth: 300mm
Weight: 400kg