Merino heritage preserved
AWI has funded the preservation and cataloguing of historical wool collections from 1804 to the present, including photographic material dating from the 1800s.
Five thousand samples of wool have been preserved. One thousand of them have been measured and photographed using modern equipment, to determine the characteristics and features of prominent Merino bloodlines across two centuries.
Consultant to AWI Dr Paul Swan says that through a partnership with the Powerhouse Museum, AWI has helped preserve an important part of the heritage of the Australian Merino industry.
“It was common practice for studs to send to the museum (established in 1879) samples from prize-winning rams and ewes,” Dr Swan says. “The result is that many of the most influential sheep studs and stud breeders in the history of the Australian Merino industry are represented in the collection.
“We have found Merino fleece samples from the 1890s which have an average diameter of 17 microns, are more than 100 millimetres in length, with no fibres greater than 30 microns – in today’s terms, qualities many growers would like to emulate in their clips.
“The material will now be available for public or private viewing, and will be made available on the museum’s database and website.”
Author Charles Massy is updating his book The Australian Merino, which chronicles the history of the Merino in Australia, as part of the commemoration of 200 years of Australian wool. He will now have access to information about samples and images of the sheep and wool across this period.
“This is a very important step in the commemoration and celebration of the industry’s great achievement,” Mr Massy says. “Eight samples of wool from Marsden’s original flock, including sheep from whom the original bale would have been prepared, are included in the collection. These staples were sent to King George III in 1804 as evidence of the colony’s potential, and immediately preceded the sending of the first bale.”
Image: Telling a wonderful story: one of the early samples
Return to Beyond the Bale Issue 29 index page.