After a quiet period, interest in bookplates in Australia began to increase in the early 1970s, This example was commissioned from Andrew Thomas a Ballarat photographer and designer by Michael Taffe owner of Hymettus at Ballarat in the 1990s and is a computer assisted design. It incorporates the generational family home, Hymettus and the family coat of arms with the owner's signature.Bookplate from Hymettus Cottage and Garden, first open to the public in 1917 as champion garden City of Ballaarat. the bookmark indicates the book it is affixed to was part of the family library in the house and represents four generations from 19th, 20th and 21st centuries a rare phenomenon in urban Australia.Bookplate depicts "Hymettus", a weatherboard cottage behind a paling fence with cottage name above image and family crest below.Signature of M. J. Taffe.ballarat, bookplate, hymettus, taaffe, taffe, andrew thomas

Hymettus won the Caulfield Cup in 1898 and the owners built this house, near Lake Wendouree, with the winnings. It won the title of Ballarat's Champion Cottage from 1915-18. The cottage contains many of the original furnishings and fittings and has beautiful gardens. Two digital images of Ballarat's hymettus Cottage. .1) The garden as it was before the 1980s drought. .2) The Cottagehymettus, hymettus cottage, garden, flower, taffe

Colour image of Hymettus Cottage, Ballarat. architecture, garden, hymettus cottage

Colour photographs of the formal garden at Hymettus Cottage in Ballarat.hymettus cottage, garden, horticulture, taffe

Colour image of the interior entrance of Hymettus Cottage, Ballarat. architecture, hymettus cottage

Photograph taken by Michael Taffe of Hymettus, family property at Ballarat since 1899 on the centenary of it being awarded "Champion Cottage Garden" for the City of Ballarat in 1918. architecture, hymettus, cottage, ballarat

Colour image of the repousse name plaque on Hymettus Cottage, Ballarat. architecture, garden, hymettus cottage, repousse

Colour image of a stained glass window at Hymettus Cottage, Ballarat. architecture, hymettus cottage, stained glass window

Colour image of a stained glass window at Hymettus Cottage, Ballarat. architecture, hymettus cottage, stained glass window

Plastic, cased silverplate souvenir spoon from when Hymettus Cottage and Garden, Ballarat was open to the public1985 - 2010.The Taffe family home, Hymettus was open to the public as a tourist attraction and house museum 1985 - 2010 following extensive heritage work with Victoria 150th funding and analysis from Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne. The property was awarded Champion Cottage Garden for the City of Ballaarat 1915-1918. Following restoration work it was the only nineteenth century working mans' exhibition garden retaining original layout and plantings from the Victorian/Edwardian era surviving in Australia. The property has been lived in by the same family from 1899 - the present.souvenir spoon, tourism, ballarat, museum, heritage garden, historic house, open garden scheme

Postcards produced for visitors to Ballarat and Hymettus as souvenirs and for posting. These postcards were produced as promotional material for the then Heritage listed house and garden's centenary in 1998.Following receipt of Government Grant for restoration of this historic cottage and garden in 1998-99 the postcard was produced to mark the centenary of the family's purchase of the property and continuous domicile for a century.souvenir, postcard, ballarat, hymettus, heritage listing,

Photograph of Hymettus Cardigan Street Ballarat. Awarded Mayoral trophy for Champion Cottage Garden City of Ballaarat 1915 - 1918 in a city renowned as The Garden City.Hymettus was designed by architect/builder Turton in 1900 following the loss of much of the original cottage to fire. Turton designed many Ballarat buildings and his advertising featured his cottage line, commercial line and mansion line. Hymettus is basically a late Victorian style with Federation elements some of which, like these window shade brackets, were added later.hymettus, ballarat, champion, garden city., architecture, design, federation, late victorian

gardens, horticulture, hymettus, architecture, ballarat, federation, victorian

Hymettus Historic Garden and its cottage museum were opened to the public in 1985 after two years of garden restoration work. The interpretive work was undertaken by Mr and a team from Melbourne's Royal Botanical Gardens and the Taffe family. Plans were drawn up by Peter Lumley and Michael Looker of the Royal Botanical Gardens and the work of restoration undertaken by the family with financial assistance from Heritage Victoria and The City of Ballaarat. historic garden, ballarat, hymettus, postcard, royal botanical gardens melbourne, restoration, city of ballaarat.

This simple rear cottage door at Hymettus built 1900-1901 has been the back door since the early 1900s. Photos in the family collection however, reveal that it was originally the return front verandah door to the dining-room and the transition seems to have occurred about 1910 when a new door was installed for the front verandah to complement the art-nouveau lead light transom and surrounds to the main front entrance. A similar simple glass and two panel cottage door closes off the passage from main passageway to the kitchen and service end of the home so that the home presents as more simple in the service area fittings with more decorative features to the more important front rooms of the home reflecting the progression of style as the family had more money to spend on the home.

After a quiet period, interest in bookplates in Australia began to increase in the early 1970s, Entrepreneurial art and book collectors such as Edwin Jewell and others commissioned multiple Bookplate designs from a range of well known fine artists. At a 1997 meeting in Melbourne of the Ephemera Society of Australia Edwin Jewell and others announced the formation of the Australian Bookplate Society. The society was instrumental in promoting the art of the bookplate through establishment of the Australian Bookplate Design competition. The competition includes a design award for secondary schools students.Bookplate depicts a weatherboard cottage behind a paling fence.Signature incorporated within platebookplate, printmaking, hymettus cottage, ballarat, michael taffe

gardens, horticulture, 1928, ballarat

The popular box camera of Eastman Kodak of U.S.A. was a camera with a simple lens. It provided snapshots at a low cost and was the most popular mass marketed camera for Australians at the time. It remains in Hymettus, the home of its original owner, Patrick (Paddy) Taffe.This camera is of interest for two reasons: 1. It is an example of the Box Brownie camera which was a very popular camera owned by many Australians in the early 20th century. 2. It belonged to Patrick Taffe of Hymettus in the early 20th century and with other cameras in the house across the generations, illustrates the changes in popular photography across the century into the 21st century.Black leather covered rectangular box of heavy board. Main lens and 2 viewfinder lenses on the front. Black leather handle, one view finder and metal opening latch on the top. One view finder and a winder key on the right hand side. Red film counter viewing window on the back, with markings. Leather at rear lifting and metal attachments rusting.Stamped into leather 'Use Film 116A with a small metal plaque reading, "Made in USA by the Eastman Kodak Company Rochester NY. USA 14403."photography, ballarat, taffe, hymettus,

This example of a late 1920s valance retained in the front parlour at Hymettus is a part of the period decoration and still fills its purpose of over a century ago in concealing the curtain rails. of the room. Although the house was built 1900 -1901 the room was redecorated in the late 1920s.A rare surviving example of a silk patterned and machine embroidered valance in situ since the 1920s.Nilvalance, window, parlour, hymettus, ballarat

This Edwardian shower surround remains in situ on its original cast iron claw-foot enamelled bath in the bathroom at Hymettus cottage Ballarat and remains in use in 2026.Nilhymettus, ballarat, household, edwardian, shower, ripple iron, shower surround

This plaque presented to rower Marion Taffe in recognition of her winning a national championship in 1994 was presented by the Ballarat Sporting Foundation. Together with awards and memorabilia in the family home Hymettus at Ballarat, represents one generational award in a home with awards for excellence covering four generations for over a century.The Ballarat Sports Awards, held annually celebrate elite and grassroots achievements in the region and this was for Marion Taffe's winning of a national rowing title in Tasmania in 1994. Marion went on to represent Australia in world titles and many of her awards are held here in this generational Taffe family home of 127 years.Enamel plaque and engraved silver plate mounted on polished wooden frame.Marion Taffe. In recognition of winning a National Championship in WSB4 Tasmania 1994.rowing, awards, ballarat, sports, hymettus

This is one of several surviving flower show award cards from the Victorian era won by family members at Hymettus Cottage in Ballarat. Awarded c.1900 to Mrs Taffe.Local flower show award from c.1900 together with others in this collection of Taffe family flower show awards demonstrates the significance of such shows as a form of social activity as well as horticultural science over the decades.ballarat, horticulture, horticultural society, awards, gardening, floristry, hymettus

A small group of lace bookmarks handmade for sale through the craft shop at Numurkah in Victoria and purchased in April 2025 for the collection at Hymettus, at the time, the largest collection of bookmarks in Australia. Example of the quality of craft work being made in Victoria, 2025. Made by Shona Thomas of Numurkah in teaching herself tatting. Tatting is a form of knotted lace making using thread and a small shuttle. Twisted threads are tied around or through small, pointed shuttles producing a stable, strong lace using simple knots to make rings and chains embellished with picots.a sleeve containing four handmade cotton bookmarks.N/Acraft, numurkah, tatting, cotton, dyes, hymettus, bookmarks, lace

Journal of the Australian Horticultural Industry for November - December 1991 front cover image of Michael Taffe (III) in the garden at Hymettus Ballarat. Feature article on the restoration of Hymettus Historic Garden Ballarat by Nancy Brewer.hymettus, historic garden ballarat, horticulture, magazine, hournal, nancy brewer.gardening, floral.

One of many items found in the garden and around the property at Hymettus during restoration works in the 1980s, often called a penny ink container or dwarf ink bottle. Hymettus has been in the tenure of the same family since 1898-99. This ink bottle is historically significant as it represents methods of hand written communication that were common up until the 1940s. Salt glazed ceramic ink bottleceramics, pottery, writing, salt glaze, ink bottle

Michael and Patrick Taffe in their father's prizewinning garden at Hymettus, Ballarat circa 1920s.

fictionredemptorist monastery wendouree, ballarat, library stamp, art nouveau

1940s china novelty egg cup belonging to the Taffe family in situ in Hymettus Cottage since the 1940s.An example of a popular kitchen object this egg cup is both utilitarian and decorative, being popular with the Taffe children from the 1940scircular stamp to base "KELLE ST POTTERY CO LTD ENGLAND HANDPAINTED with painter's mark.egg cup, porcelain, kitchenware, england, ballarat