Summary

Piece of coal sewn up in linen marked 'Coal May 1918'. Donor not known. It has been suggested (by an unidentified person at Museums Victoria) that the coal was brought home by a Royal Australian Navy stoker.

However, the coal might be associated with John Monash. In May 1919, General Monash was asked by the Victorian Agent General in London to help 'liberate' technical secrets from German brown coal mining companies in the Rhine Valley. Monash immediately dispatched a trusted deputy, Major Noel Mulligan. In just four weeks of clandestine activity, Mulligan amassed a large collection of engineering drawings, photographs and technical data, including a working model of the latest German briquette press design (ST 024355). The information was later enormously valuable to the State Electricity Commission of Victoria (SECV) in its endeavours to develop Victoria's brown coal resources in the Latrobe Valley.

Alternatively, the coal may relate to an industrial context in Australia. In May 1918 trouble was brewing in Australian collieries, with the introduction of non-union labour, as well as working conditions and 'slackness' at some collieries. The coal may be a memento of that time.

Physical Description

Piece of coal sewn up in linen marked 'Coal May 1918'.

More Information