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A larger than life bronze statue erected in memory of Captain James Cook.
Artist: Thomas Woolner
Artwork description
This larger than life size bronze figure shows Captain James Cook holding out a telescope in his left hand with his right hand extended upward.
The sculpture stands on a Moruya granite pedestal in Hyde Park south.
The work was commissioned on 26 September 1874 and was officially unveiled to the public on 25 February 1879.
More information
Following advice from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Panel, Council voted in July 2011 to use the word ‘invasion’ in the City of Sydney Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander protocols to more accurately describe the arrival of Europeans in Australia in 1788. The plan noted the following:
“In 1788, the British established a convict outpost on the shores of Sydney Harbour. This had far reaching and devastating impacts on the Eora Nation, including the occupation and appropriation of their traditional lands.
“Despite the destructive impact of this invasion, Aboriginal culture endured and is now globally recognised as one of the world's oldest living cultures. Aboriginal peoples have shown, and continue to show, enormous resilience coupled with generosity of spirit towards other peoples with whom they now share their land.
“The Council of the City of Sydney recognises that, by acknowledging our shared past, we are laying the groundwork for a future which embraces all Australians, a future based on mutual respect and shared responsibility for our land.”
“Despite the destructive impact of this invasion, Aboriginal culture endured and is now globally recognised as one of the world's oldest living cultures. Aboriginal peoples have shown, and continue to show, enormous resilience coupled with generosity of spirit towards other peoples with whom they now share their land.
“The Council of the City of Sydney recognises that, by acknowledging our shared past, we are laying the groundwork for a future which embraces all Australians, a future based on mutual respect and shared responsibility for our land.”
This position paved the way for continuing conversations about how we might address monuments in our collection that don’t accurately acknowledge our shared history. This work is ongoing.
Artist
Thomas Woolner (1825–1892) was born in Hadleigh, Suffolk and studied at the Royal Academy. He was the only sculptor as founding member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and had a successful career.
Woolner travelled to Australia in 1852 and went on to have limited success on the goldfields in Victoria. In 1854 he visited Sydney following the completion of a series of portrait medallions, one of which was a likeness of William Charles Wentworth for which he was commended. However, he was unsuccessful in gaining a commission to create the full length statue of Wentworth, which now stands in the Great Hall at the University of Sydney. Woolner returned to England shortly afterwards and was made a full member of the Royal Academy in 1874.
