Sydney Parkinson Britain, New Zealand, Australia, c1745-71
Past Sales
Sales by Medium
Where to buy or sell art works by Sydney Parkinson
Auction Houses
About Sydney Parkinson
Born in Scotland in 1745, Sydney Parkinson was a competent botanical draughtsman, being employed by Joseph Banks in 1767. In 1768 he joined Cook's expedition to the Pacific, making over 1500 drawings during the voyage. He was the first artist to set foot in Australia. His best known works are Aboriginal subjects and a view of the Endeavour at Cooktown. On his return voyage to England, Parkinson contracted dysentery in Batavia and died.
Our database records art auction sales of works by Sydney Parkinson from 1977 and in total 10 works by the artist have been offered for sale, of which 6 (60%) were sold. The highest price recorded for the artist is $3,000 for Black Naped Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus Melanospila) sold by Leonard Joel in May 1977. This year 2 works have been offered for sale. Works by Sydney Parkinson are held by the National Gallery of Victoria, Ian Potter Museum of Art and a further two major public national galleries (see list below).
Sydney Parkinson is listed in the following standard biographical references:
- McCulloch, Alan McCulloch, Susan McCulloch, Emily McCulloch-Childs. The New McCulloch's Encyclopedia of Australian Art. 4th Edition, Aus Art Melbourne & The Miegunyah Press, 2006. Page 757
- Kerr, Joan. Dictionary of Australian Artists, Painters, Sketchers, Photographers and Engravers to 1870. Oxford University Press, Australia, 1993. Page 603
- Campbell, Jean. Australian Watercolour Painters: 1780 to the Present Day. Craftsman House, Sydney, 1989. Page 351
- Gil Docking, with additions by Michael Gunn covering 1970-90. Two Hundred Years of New Zealand Painting, David Bateman Ltd., New Zealand, 1990 Page 16
- McGahey, Kate. The Concise Dictionary of New Zealand Artists Painters Printmakers Sculptors, Gilt Edge Publishing, Wellington, New Zealand, 2000. Page 194
- Dictionary of Australian Artists Online, an online resource for biographical data about Australian artists, designers, craftspeople and curators.
- The Find New Zealand Artists web site: a database of artist names that directs researchers to the rich resources found in New Zealand's libraries, art society exhibition histories and published sources.
Artists' Resale Royalty
Could the second and subsequent works by this artist sold after June 9, 2010 for over $1,000 be liable for the Artists' Resale Royalty? More info…
No, ineligible. The artist has been deceased for more than 70 years.
The Australian Art Sales Digest is a database of over 610,000 works by more than 12,000 artists who are listed as having either lived or worked in Australia or New Zealand, and an additional 36,000 foreign and other artists, offered for sale by auction in Australia and New Zealand from the early 1970s to the present day.
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