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Canoe
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Canoe brought back to England by Julius Brenchley in 1873.

Canoe

Sarah's favourite display piece in the Museum is the Canoe. She is amazed by the incredible craftsmanship and skill that was required to design and build it, as well as the beauty and simplistic detail of the mother of pearl sea shells. The word canoe originated from the word 'kenu' – meaning dugout. Although canoeing is now considered a sport, canoes were used for transportation throughout history. Sarah can just imagine the feeling of excitement as they sliced through the water, all paddling in time, on a gorgeous sunny day taking in the tropical beaches and seas around them.

This 9m long canoe was donated to the Museum by Julius Brenchley in 1873. In 1865, Brenchley visited the islands in the South Pacific Ocean onboard HM Steam frigate Curcao. He visited the Solomon Islands (east of Papua New Guinea) in August of that year and recorded his observations in a detailed diary. For many years this canoe was on loan to the British Museum who displayed it at the Museum of Mankind. Now, with the extension to Maidstone Museum, the canoe has been returned back to be displayed alongside many of the other artefacts collected by Julius.

Julius Lucius Brenchley (1816-1873) was a traveller, writer and collector born in Maidstone to a wealthy family. In 1845, he left England to travel Europe with his father, who unfortunately died in Paris in 1847. Julius continued to travel visiting North America, South America, Europe, Algeria, Morocco, Ceylon China, Mongolia, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Russia and Poland. During his life he was an avid collector and left to Maidstone Museum many artefacts.

Accession number: Brenchley 418