Art & Heritage

To mark the 175th anniversary of South Australia, this month we are highlighting one of the treasures of the University of Adelaide Visual Art Collection - a testimonial candelabrum designed by Julius Schomburgk and presented to John Ridley for his generous contribution to the colony in 1860.

Ridley was the inventor of an agricultural reaping machine, which helped save South Australia from financial troubles in the 1840s. His machine enabled crops to be reaped mechanically, making harvest more efficient. Ridley declined to take out a patent on his invention thereby allowing the colony to receive its financial benefits and to prosper.

Schomburgk emigrated to South Australia from Prussia in 1850 and soon established a solid reputation for his silversmithing and design skills. A committed exponent of Victorian naturalism, he incorporated in his designs a vast range of sculptural motifs representing Australian flora and fauna in combination with figures of Aborigines. This work is one of the most spectacular examples of his oeuvre.

In 1930 Ridley's daughter, Miss J T Ridley, gave the candelabrum to the University's Waite Agricultural Research Institute. It is now on display in the Mitchell Building, North Terrace Campus. If you wish to see it, please contact Art & Heritage Collections on 08 8313 3086.

Mirna Heruc, Manager, Art & Heritage Collections