The Golwa with part of Hindmarsh Island

Plate 52 'The Golwa [Goolwa] with part of Hindmarsh Island. Mount Barker and Mount Magnificent in the distance (evening)'.
Part of the text accompanying the illustration reads: 'The point chosen for the view given on the adjoining plate is from the back of the sand hills of Encounter Bay, looking over the dry lagoons and swampy salsolaceaous flats that border on the lake towards the expanse of the Goolwa. A portion of Hindmarsh Island is seen on the right; at the promontory beyond is a dense column of smoke, arising from the bush being on fire in that direction. The time of the scene is evening, and the remote mountain ranges look intensely blue at that hour. The two most distant peaks denote Mt. Barker, and the cupola-like summit on the left is Mt. Magnificent. In the foreground are bushes of wild juniper, and the 'Mesembryanthemum' and other plants overrun the soil.'

This is one of 60 coloured lithographs found in the 1847 edition of South Australia illustrated by colonial artist George French Angas, together with a descriptive passage for each. The lithograph was created by J.W. Giles from Angas' original painting. The date assigned is assumed to be approximately when the lithographs were created; the original paintings were done in earlier years.

George French Angas (1822-1886), naturalist and painter, was born on 25 April 1822 at Newcastle upon Tyne, England, fourth child and eldest son of George Fife Angas and his wife Rosetta, née French. He sailed for Australia in 1843 on the Augustus, reached Adelaide in January 1844, and remained in South Australia until July when he left for New Zealand. He returned to South Australia in January 1845 and remained for six months. During these visits to South Australia Angas went with William Giles to the area in the vicinity of the mouth of the River Murray, and with Governor (Sir) George Grey to the south-east of the province, Kangaroo Island and Port Lincoln. These journeys Angas recorded in water-colour drawings which were shown in Adelaide in June 1845 in the Legislative Council chamber.