The sculptural installation was a gift from the Portuguese government and presented to Warrnambool City Council. The sculptor, Jose Nuncio, completed the work in 1999, and it was inaugurated at Warrnambool in 2001. Prince Henry the Navigator founded a school of navigation in Sagres, Portugal. This led to navigation techniques that made the 15th century voyages of discovery possible. The vision of Prince Henry brought together ship builders, cartographers, instrument makers and mathematicians. Vasco de Gama rounded the southern tip of Africa and sailed across the Indian Ocean to India in 1496. This started a new era of trade and exploration, expanding the boundaries of the known world, and linking the east with west.Six colour photographs of a sculptural installation at Warrnambool. Busts of Vasco De Gama and Prince Henry the Navigator feature in the installation. Images also include two informative plaques containing information on De Gama and the Prince.warrnambool, exploration, navigator, de gama, prince henry the navigator, portugal, portuguese, david atkinson, john pandazopoulos

Harold Gatty was born on January 5th, 1903 in Campbell Town, Tasmania. He was a navigator and aviation pioneer. He began his career learning navigation at the age of 14 as a midshipman at the Royal Australian Naval College but withdrew after three years and became an apprenticed ship's officer with the Patrick Steamship Company of Sydney. After W. W. 1 he joined the Australian Merchant Navy where he learned the constellations while standing night watch and became an expert in celestial navigation while serving on many ships sailing between Australia and California. In 1927 he moved to California and opened a navigation school and also a laboratory repairing navigational equipment. At this time he became very interested in air navigation and was aware of the limitations of existing methods and instruments for aerial navigation. He began researching ways of improving aerial navigation. Two early inventions of his were his air sextant and a ground speed and drift indicator which formed the basis of the automatic pilot which later came to be standard equipment on most aircraft. He worked with several record breaking pilots including Ann Morrow Lindbergh (who went on to serve as a navigator for her husband Charles Lindbergh), helped Wiley Post break the world record circumnavigating the Earth, invented a new method of "dead reckoning" that revolutionised the ability to fly safely through cloudy conditions without drifting off course and famously navigated a small plane (whilst trying to cross the Pacific) over 1900 km through fog (with no radio) and using only his dead reckoning techniques, back to their starting point in Japan after they developed fuel problems. In 1932 Gatty received the Distinguished Flying Cross from President Hoover. In 1934 Gatty formed the South Seas Commercial Company with Donald Douglas with the aim to deliver air services to the islands of the South Pacific. The Company was sold to Pan Am but he continued to work for them. In 1935 he went on a sailing expedition investigating several small islands in the South Pacific and was briefly marooned on Baker Island. He was able to use his extensive knowledge of seabird habits to save the crew. He was also very interested in the ability of the Polynesians to navigate using the stars. During the Second World War Gatty was given the honorary rank of Group Captain in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and worked for the U. S. Army Air Forces (USAAF) in the South Pacific. In 1943 he moved to Washington where he developed a survival book (The Raft Book) specifically for boat crews or air crews flying over the Pacific to help them survive and navigate their life rafts in remote areas of the ocean. The original book was 152 pages long however a condensed version was made which consisted of a 64 page booklet, combined map and star chart and calendar strip enclosed in a waterproof slipcase, to be placed in life rafts for emergency use. The booklet included navigational advice and ideas such as ocean currents, estimation of distance, using a compass, measurement of angles, recognising and steering by the stars, land indications from sea birds, migration of sea birds and insects, sounds from the land, the scent of the land and ocean currents and the colour of the sea etc. After W.W.2 Gatty moved to Fiji and formed Fiji Airways (which later became Air Pacific). Harold Gatty died in August 1957.The two copies of "The Raft Book" are significant as they are a written summary of the many methods of sea navigation (both modern and historical) that existed in the 1940's. They are also a record of Harold Gatty, who played a significant role in the development of modern day aerial navigation using his understanding of different sea navigational techniques.Two rectangular brown packets with waterproof coverings (oiled paper) titled "The Raft Book" by Harold Gatty. Each packet contains a folded 64 page paper booklet with detailed instructions for navigating a small craft in open seas, a folded chart (with a map of the world and oceans, well known constellations, latitude and longitude charts, Greenwich time and a scale for string lengths and Harp scale) and a long folded paper calendar strip.Front of package - "WATERPROOFED EDITION OF/ THE RAFT BOOK / By Harold Gatty / BOOK AND WORLD CHART / FOR / EMERGENCY NAVIGATION / To open envelope tear along above line. If the envelope is used again fold the flap to keep contents dry. 1. This envelope contains a book, chart and tape for emergency navigation. The contents are folded to take up the least possible space and therefore should not be removed until needed. 2. if the chart and tape are immersed in water for a long period, there will be a slight variation in the scale but the strength and resistence to tear of the paper will not be changed. In the event of long immersion, dry the chart and tape as much as possible before using in order to in order to get the greatest accuracy in scale. Front of booklet - THE RAFT BOOK / LORE OF THE SEA AND SKY /By Harold Gatty IMPORTANT FOR YOUR SECURITY/Upon abandoning ship you may have to be your own navigator. Take the following pre/cautions for your own safety:/ Carry a good type of pocket watch / keep it wound and have it running on Greenwich (England) / Time, which you can get from the navigating officer. / Keep track of the date at Greenwich; and on a 24-hour basis, / know whether the time is, say, 6 hours (6 A.M.) showing on / your watch, or 18 hours (6P.M.) Greenwich. / PROECT YOUR WATCH. GET A RUBBER SACK FOR IT (OBTAIN FROM PHARMACIST) AND KEEP IT DRY / KEEP A PENCIL IN YOUR POCKET/ POSITION OF SHIP WHEN ABANDONED PRINTED IN UNITED STATES OF AMERICA GEORGE GRADY PRESS, NEW YORK/COPYRIGHT, 1943, BY HAROLD AND FENNA GATTYflagstaff hill maritime museum and village, shipwreck coast, warrnambool, the raft book, harold gatty, book and world chart for emergency navigation, ww 2, ww ii, navigation, air navigation, aerial navigation, lindbergh, wiley post, dead reckoning, south seas commercial company, u.s. army airforce, usaaf, survival book, life rafts, sea navigation, emergency navigation, fiji airways, harp scale

This photograph of deep-sea diver Ted Ward (E.G. Ward) on board a vessel. The photograph was produced in the local town of Timboon, and is part of the E. G. Ward Collection. This photograph, depicting a diving suit from the early 1900s, offers a glimpse into the rich history of diving. The details found on the back of the photograph, including the printer’s mark and inscribed names, establish a strong connection to local history and the individuals involved in this era of marine exploration. The southwest coast is renowned for its numerous shipwrecks, many of which have been discovered and explored by dedicated divers. These explorations have greatly contributed to our understanding of the region’s history, shedding light on aspects such as shipbuilding techniques, patterns of export and immigration, navigation practices, and other important facets of maritime life.Black and white photograph, portrait orientation, of a diver dressed in full diving gear standing on board a sailing vessel at sea. Inscriptions on reverse. The photograph is part of the E.G. Ward Collection.Handwritten in black pen "T. WARD" [E. G Ward, also known as Ted Ward] Stamped in black ink "REPRODUCED BY" above rectangular stamp. Text within stamp "[K. TREGEA / CALLOWAY ST / TIMBOON VIC"flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, photograph, diving gear, diving suit, deep sea diving, deep sea diver, diver, south west victoria, diving photograph, t ward, k tregea, timboon, marine technology, life saving, e. g. ward, ted ward, e g ward, e.g. ward, edward ward