Eclectic Treasures: Bendigo’s private collections closes on Sunday, August 14. Displayed at the Post Office Gallery, the exhibition explores a selection of unique local collections and the motivations for seeking and acquiring objects.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
One of Bendigo’s best-known and respected collectors, Dennis O’Hoy, is one of 16 local collectors featured in the exhibition.
Dennis has been collecting for 65 years, starting when he was just 12- years-old. Many items from his vast collection have previously been exhibited in the National Museum of Australia, Museum of Australian Democracy in Canberra, many state galleries and museums and educational institutions.
For this particular exhibition, we focussed on his Chinese and South East Asian ceramics.
It has been within the last two decades that Dennis has become increasingly interested in marine archaeology. This field has developed significantly. These artefacts have subsequently become available on the world markets.
For Dennis, the renowned auction houses such as Christie’s have been the starting point for most of these acquisitions. As well as purchasing from auction houses, Dennis has also bought pieces during past travels to London, Singapore, Hong Kong, China and the United States, junk yards, old tips, antique and collectors’ fairs, friends, newspaper advertisements and from online auction sites.
The catalogues and publications related to all of the shipwreck items are also sourced, which help to form the provenance of each item. Interestingly, some of these items have proven to be excellent teaching aids when Dennis was a lecturer at La Trobe University. He was able to let the students handle and study the items – much more interactive than looking at books.
Some of the most interesting items for Dennis are those acquired from the Michael Hatcher Collection. A shipwreck expert and marine salvor, Hatcher specialised in work in the South China Sea.
He is especially known for his recovery of Chinese porcelain from the ship Geldermalsen (also known as the Nanking cargo) in the 1980s and the Tek Sing shipwreck in 1999.
The Tek Sing sank in 1822 in an area of the South China Sea known as the Belvidere Shoals. The ship had a crew of 200 as well as approximately 1600 passengers on board.
The huge loss of life associated with the sinking led to the Tek Sing being referred to as the ‘Titanic of the East’.
Dennis owns ceramics excavated from both of these wrecks. Collected over the last 20 years, some items are in better condition and more complete than those from the same wreck currently on display in museums today.
To view these amazing ceramics, or any of the other quirky and fabulous objects on display from private collections, visit the Post Office Gallery, 51 – 67 Pall Mall, Bendigo, open seven days a week from 9am to 5pm.
Entry is by donation.