EXHIBITS

OUR FIGUREHEAD

           In 1973 a ship’s figurehead was donated to the NHS Museum by the Mitchell family. It had been in the backyard of a house in Rosebud for a long time. The figurehead consists of two hollowed out pieces of curved wood carved in the form of a stylised bird figure. Carved on the back is a crest consisting of a shield outline containing a heart pierced by an arrow. Our research shows that it may have come from a ship called the ‘Sea’, wrecked off Point Nepean in 1853 on route from Melbourne to Callao, Peru.

This year we received a significance assessment grant from Heritage Victoria to enable the Society to commission a professional historian to research the provenance of the figurehead. Robin Hodgson, a local expert in this field, is pictured with Jo Davie. She is taking photos, wood and paint samples which will be analysed and results sent around the world to help us discover the history of this curious object

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Joy Kitch

 

   
 

THE COLLECTION

FEATURED DISPLAYS

 

Treasures of Early Sorrento:

Photos of the first Sorrento families and Sorrento as it used to look.

Stories of Famous People:

George Coppin, the entrepeneur, who brought the Tram to Sorrento as one of his many achievements.

Harold Holt, the Prime Minister, who drowned at Cheviot Beach.

....and many others

1803 Settlement Site:

A display about the 1803 Settlement Site at Sullivan Bay, Sorrento.

 

The Museum contains over 2000 artefacts, including

  • Aboriginal relics
  • an original water cask from the 1803 Sullivan Bay Settlement
  • beautifully displayed, authentic 19th century fashions
  • household equipment
  • china
  • examples of early technology
  • shipwreck relics
  • memorabilia from early pioneering families
  • models of the first ships to sail into Port Phillip Bay - 'The Lady Nelson' and 'H.M.S. Calcutta'
  • model of the Sorrento Trams
  • model of a limestone kiln
  • The Electric Ball