By Edward Duyker Every now and then, we can all be surprised by what we dig up in the garden, be it a tool, a missing piece of jewellery or a coin. On 26 March 2025, my wife Susan was weeding in our vegetable garden and found a weathered 1-Cent Read more
One of the most significant collections relating to the Dutch presence in Australia during the Second World War can now be found at the Northern Rivers Military Museum in Casino, New South Wales. The museum has developed a dedicated Camp Victory display that tells the remarkable story of the Royal Read more
At first glance, a worn red file folder preserved in the collection of the Bronbeek Museum appears to be one of the least remarkable objects associated with the Second World War. Unlike aircraft, weapons or uniforms, it is simply a piece of office stationery. Yet this modest object tells an Read more
Among the many personal objects preserved in the collection of the Bronbeek Museum is a small Australian Red Ensign carrying a handwritten dedication linked to one of the most significant dates in Australian history: 15 August 1945, Victory in the Pacific Day (VP Day). The flag formed part of the Read more
During the Second World War, northern Australia became a crucial operational base for Allied air forces defending the continent and supporting offensive operations into the Netherlands East Indies. Among the aircraft deployed in this theatre was a Dutch-operated North American B-25 Mitchell bomber, serial N5-156, whose dramatic loss in October Read more
On 28 October 1945, a Netherlands East Indies Air Force (NEI-AF) B-25J Mitchell bomber was forced to ditch in tidal waters in the remote Kimberley region of Western Australia. The aircraft, serial N5-254 (USAAF 44-30900), came down in the Glenelg River system north of Broome, although some contemporary sources refer Read more
From VOC trading worlds to wartime exile: a material history across four centuries Dutch coins discovered in Australia tell a story far richer and more complex than simple first contacts or accidental landfalls. These small objects, sometimes corroded coppers, sometimes fused silver from shipwreck sites, and sometimes the stray pocket Read more
On 1 August 1711 the ship the Zuytdorp left the Netherlands with a load of freshly minted silver coins. The ship never arrived at its destination and was never heard from again. No search was undertaken, presumably because the VOC did not know whether or where the shipwrecked or if Read more
The wreck of the VOC ship Vergulde Draeck (Gilt Dragon) in 1656 is one of the most enduring mysteries of early Dutch contact with Australia. While the wreck site was rediscovered in 1963, the fate of the seventy-five survivors who reached the shore has never been conclusively known. Recent archaeological Read more
Kasteel Batavia stood as the administrative heart of the Dutch East Indies, begun in 1619 under Jan Pieterszoon Coen. The rectangular fortress, built on the western bank of the Groote Rivier (now Kali Besar), featured four bastions—Amsterdam, Zeelandia, Hollandia and Westfriesland—connected by thick walls enclosing offices, warehouses, and the Governor-General’s Read more