“… Dreamt of, Indeed, but Utterly Unknown!”: The Earle Panoramas of the Tasman World

Abstract

ABSTRACTIn the early nineteenth century London society had the opportunity to view large panoramas of the Australasian settlements of Sydney (1828–30), Hobart Town (1831), and the Bay of Islands, New Zealand (1837–39). These were based upon the drawings and information supplied by the travelling artist Augustus Earle, who had circumnavigated the world between 1818 and 1830. Each show was accompanied by an illustrated commentary indicating natural resources, the state of development, and representative people. Fortifications, penal institutions, industries, shipping, government, churches and missionaries, colonists, and indigenous people were illustrated and described. Each panorama presented a layered society which connected to complex networks extending across the globe. Despite these shows’ shared colonial status and common geographical location, there were significant differences between their respective compositions that aligned with their specific contexts. Each presented narratives that were developed to satisfy attendees’ fascinations, community leaders’ aspirations, and the political and economic imperatives driving future development. Examination of the composition and reception of the panoramas provides insight into prevailing attitudes towards empire, criminality, and race. Finally, Earle’s contribution to the panoramas is found to be substantial, establishing their significance within his oeuvre.