''The Foundation of Perth 1829'' is a 1929 oil-on-canvas painting by

George Pitt Morison George Pitt Morison (31 August 1861 – 4 September 1946) was an Australian painter and engraver. He is noted in particular for his painting '' The Foundation of Perth 1829'' which was commissioned as part of Western Australia's centenary cele ...

. It depicts a reconstruction of the ceremony by which the town of

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, Western Australia was founded on 12 August 1829. Morison painted the work as part of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

's centenary celebrations, and presented it to the

Art Gallery of Western Australia The Art Gallery of Western Australia (AGWA) is a public art gallery that is part of the Perth Cultural Centre, in Perth. It is located near the Western Australian Museum and State Library of Western Australia and is supported and managed by the ...

in February 1929. The painting took George Pitt Morison almost eighteen months to research and paint. He studied a number of contemporary accounts of the ceremony, and had access to photographs of the people present. The official ceremony depicted in the image was held on a small hill overlooking the Swan River, in the immediate vicinity of the present

Perth Town Hall The Perth Town Hall, situated on the corner of Hay and Barrack streets in Perth, Western Australia, is the only town hall built by convicts in Australia. Upon completion it was the tallest structure in Perth. History Designed by Richard Roac ...

. As no stones were readily available, it was decided to mark the occasion by felling a tree. The only woman to accompany the party so far up the river from Fremantle, Mrs Helena Dance, was invited to strike the first blow. ''The Foundation of Perth'' depicts Mrs Dance holding the axe and about to make the first cut. Immediately to the right of her in the painting is an axe-man, waiting to complete the task. Other people depicted in the work include Lieutenant Governor James Stirling, Captain

Charles Fremantle Admiral Sir Charles Howe Fremantle GCB RN (1 June 1800 – 25 May 1869) was a renowned British Royal Navy officer. The city of Fremantle, Western Australia, is named after him. Early life Fremantle was the second son of Thomas Fremantle, an ...

, Commander

Mark John Currie Captain Mark John Currie RN (later Vice-Admiral) played a significant role in the exploration of Australia and the foundation of the Swan River Colony, later named Western Australia. He explored areas in New South Wales, after which he returned ...

, Major

Frederick Irwin Lieutenant-Colonel Frederick Chidley Irwin, KH (22 March 1794 – 31 March 1860) was acting Governor of Western Australia from 1847 to 1848. Born in 1794 in Drogheda, Ireland, Frederick Chidley Irwin was the son of Reverend James Irwin. Some ...

, Captain William Dance, the Colonial Secretary

Peter Broun Peter Nicholas Broun (17 August 1797 – 5 November 1846), known for most of his life as Peter Nicholas Brown, was the first Colonial Secretary of Western Australia, and a member of Western Australia's first Legislative Council. Early life Pe ...

, Dr William Milligan and the Surveyor-General Lieutenant

John Septimus Roe John Septimus Roe (8 May 1797 – 28 May 1878) was the first Surveyor-General of Western Australia. He was a renowned explorer, a member of Western Australia's legislative and executive councils for nearly 40 years, but also a participant in ...

. Milligan, however, may not actually have been at the ceremony. While some records claim that Milligan arrived aboard on 8 June 1829, others claim that he emigrated to Western Australia with his wife, child and a nephew, arriving aboard on 30 January 1830. If Milligan arrived on 30 January 1830, more than five months after the foundation ceremony, he cannot have been present. ''The Foundation of Perth 1829'' has become an "enduring and influential image" (Gooding 1989) in the

history of Western Australia The human history of Western Australia commenced between 40,000 and 60,000 years ago with the arrival of Aboriginal Australians on the northwest coast. The first inhabitants expanded across the east and south of the continent. The first record ...

. It was used extensively in both the 1929 centenary celebrations, and the

WAY 1979 WAY 79, also referred to as WAY '79 and WAY 1979, was the official 1979 sesquicentennial (150th anniversary) celebration of the European colonisation of Western Australia. Planning Preliminary planning for WAY 79 began shortly after the March 1 ...

sesquicentennial celebrations. Often the painting is not acknowledged as an historical reconstruction, and many people have incorrectly come to accept it as an authentic record of the ceremony.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foundation of Perth 1829 History of Perth, Western Australia 1929 paintings Australian paintings Paintings in Australia