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pods for primates : a catalogue of surfboards in australia since 1900

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museums : manly art gallery

Manly Art Gallery and Museum, Manly, NSW.

West Esplanade PO 82 Box Manly NSW 1655 Australia
Phone : 61 2 9949 1776
Fax : 61 2 9948 6938
Contact : Therese Kenyon (Director)
therese.kenyon@manlycouncil.nsw.gov.au
Location : Western end of Manly Cove adjacent to Manly Aquarium
Web : www.manly.nsw.gov.au

A small, well presented, collection beach theme items in a great location.
Many exhibits have a beach focus, noteably photographs by Ray Leighton.and
an excellent permanent collection of surfweardating from the late 1800's.
The highlight for boardriders is Dick Morath's 1939 hollow ply-wood board, see below.

Items of Interest

#191 Lou Morath's Hollow Plywood Paddle Board 14 ft 1"
c.1933
Located in the centre of the Eastern Wing

Item Description :
" Surf ski board is of hollow construction made of three ply veneer over a timber frame with solid reel (sic, keel) fin sealed with pitch rails on top from centre to rear.

c. 1933
4320 x 550 x 170 mm
Collection of Manly Art Gallery
Gift of Lou Morath"
Image right : Lou Morath and another paddler in training for the 1939 Pacific Games.
from Margan and Finney, page 127

Foam Surfboard, c 1964
A standard foam Malibu board in good contition with green Manly Surf craft registration sticker 1967.
The board has no decal or markings.
Probably a professionally built board, it was possibly originally fitted with an adhesive manufacture's sticker.
Unfortunately the main feature, the Surf craft registration sticker, is currently displayed towards the wall.

Three Hollow Timber Surfskis, c 1940 - 1950
Number 1 : Painted white
Number 2 : Canvas seat, identified as originating in Port Macquarie
Number 3 : Builder idendified as O'Donell, circa 1940
These are displayed suspended from the roof and close inspection is difficult.

Other Items
The Museum has other surfcraft in its collection.