ACROSS BERRY'S BAY TO THE SOBRAON, 1939
Sydney Long
oil on canvas
51.0 x 76.0 cm
signed and dated lower left: Sydney Long / 1939
Sotheby's, Sydney, 28 August 2006, lot 49
Private collection, Sydney
Launched in November 1866, the Sobraon was one of the more famous vessels to ply the England-Australia sea route in the second half of the 19th century and was featured in the 1984 Clipper Ships issue of stamps by Australia Post. For 24 years she sailed between England and Australia and her spread of canvas meant she was capable of runs of over 2000 nautical miles in a week. Her record was some 340 nautical miles in 24 hours and she once sailed from Plymouth to Melbourne in 70 days.
In 1891 the Sobraon was purchased by the NSW Government as a replacement for the boys' training ship Vernon. Later commissioned into the RAN as HMAS Tingira in 1912, and refitted at the Cockatoo Docks, Sobraon continued in service until 1927 when she was sold. The Sobraon remained moored at Berry's Bay, Sydney until 1941 when she was broken up.1
1. http://www.library.usyd.edu.au/libraries/rare/bax/ FromSailingShipstoSteamItemsfromtheAllanEBaxCollectionofMaritimeHistory/