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Lot description
ALBERT NAMATJIRA 1902 - 1959 Woomera, 1942 watercolour and varnish on hardwood, spinifex resin 15 x 67 cm (irregular) signed lower right front; bears inscription verso: 'Aboriginal Handicraft, Hermannsburg, Central Australia', watercolour goanna PROVENANCE Aboriginal Handicraft Hermannsburg, Northern Territory Purchased by Corporal Alexander James McLaughlin, Medical Corps, whilst stationed in Alice Springs, 1942-45 Private Collection, South Australia thence by descent Accompanied by a photograph of Corporal Alexander James McLaughlin whilst stationed in Alice Springs, a copy of the service record of Corporal Alexander James McLaughlin and a letter of provenance by Malcolm Frazer, grandson of Corporal Alexander James McLaughlin. Corporal Alexander James McLaughlin enlisted in the Australian Medical Corps at age 35 following the bombing of Darwin, serving principally in Alice Springs between 1942 and 1945. During his service he acquired this work along with a number of other Indigenous artefacts, which were dispatched by parcel post to his wife Myrtle and their two young daughters, Betty and Jill, at the family home in Mont Albert, Melbourne. The works were received with considerable excitement by the young family and occupied a prominent position in the McLaughlin household for many years. According to the family, the acquisition was made from a gallery in Alice Springs. A full account of the purchase and the work's subsequent history within the family has been provided in writing by Malcolm Frazer, grandson of Corporal McLaughlin. © ALBERT NAMATJIRA / Copyright Agency, 2026