Spoon

This spoon is reported to have been used by William Darton Kekwick who was second-in-command of John McDouall Stuart's transcontinental expeditions of 1860-62. In 1860 the Stuart expedition reached the center of Australia and named Central Mount Stuart, but was not successful in crossing the entire continent. A second attempt, made the following year, was also unsuccessful. The third attempt reached the northern shore, where Stuart hoisted the Union Jack on 25 July 1862. The success of this expedition led directly to the annexation of the Northern Territory to South Australia, the establishment of a colonial settlement at Port Darwin, and the construction of the transcontinental telegraph along almost the exact route of the expedition. The significance of this object lies in the small role it played in what is sometimes referred to as the opening up of the interior.

The spoon was donated by Mrs S. F. Zuick to the Art Gallery of South Australia, and later transferred to the History Trust of South Australia, as part of the Historical Relics collection.