Sketchbook, 1817

A remarkable record of the new colony

Up Close and Personal

Edward Close (1790–1866) arrived in New South Wales in 1817 with the 48th Regiment, settling at Morpeth in the early 1820s and remaining there until his death.

The costume of the Australasians, one drawing in his sketchbook, reflects the reality of his, very male, colonial society. For at least the first forty years after settlement, convicts simply wore civilian attire, and were only made to wear specially marked clothes if they committed further crimes. This meant that a convict could dress fashionably and respectably and completely deceive a free man about his true social status.

The gentlemen and officers with their distinctive long coats and fine boots mingle with workers and convicts in their short coats and coarser cut clothes. A gentleman carries a fashionable green umbrella, readily available in Sydney shops. Professional portrait painters rarely provided this level of information about their subjects—and they never would have painted convicts.
Display item Sketchbook, 1817

 

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