Objects of Substance - School_Seal

Surprisingly, however, the seal is unmarked, which is where our trail of provenance ends, and only speculation can begin. There were undoubtedly manufacturers in Brisbane who could have forged this Seal at the time. Take for instance, the foundry in Alice Street, that crafted the ‘Great Seal for the Colony’ throughout 1894. The company of Smith & Faulkner took on the rather daunting task of repairing the Great Seal, which was originally made in England. As the below article attests, the seal was in bad shape, had ‘snapped in two’, and it was dubious as to whether there would be a local foundry fit for the job. Nevertheless, Smith & Faulkner proved their worth, in the production of ‘an exceedingly creditable piece of work… at a most reasonable price… and it is a decided improvement on the one formerly in use’.

The Queensland Times, Saturday, April 7, 1894, p. 5.