This study of fabric samples obtained by the Victorian Board for the Protection of Aborigines (BPA) around 1916-1918 is presented in a modular format, representing the different strands of enquiry inspired by the objects. It delves into the history of textile manufacture in post-contact Victoria, as well as the role of clothes in the missionary context. It explores the material links between Kooris on reserves and inmates of two other government institutions in early twentieth century Victoria: prisons and lunatic asylums. Focussing as it does on Victorian Kooris in the 1910s, prison labour and working class clothes, this study has strayed into a particularly marginal subject area, and I comment on this in a brief section on clothing in museum collections. Balancing ëhardí and ësoft approachesí to material culture research, the study pursues the tangible reality as well as the hidden qualities of the fabric samples. The seemingly divergent strands of research are drawn together in the conclusion.

[ home ] [ the objects ] [ textile manufacture ] [ missionary context ]
[ inmates ] [ clothing in museum collections ] [ material culture research ]
[ conclusion ] [ bibliography ] [ acknowledgements and disclaimers ]