Nouvelle Hollande: Nelle. Galles du Sud. Norou-gal-derri s'avançant pour combattre

An interesting portrait of a warrior of the Port Jackson tribe, Norou-gal-derri, "ready for battle".

During the Baudin voyage the French stayed in Port Jackson for some five months, ample time for the artists to become very involved with the local aboriginal populace, and indeed the Baudin voyage account is well-known for the beautiful suite of portraits engraved after originals by Petit.

Very little is known about Norou-gal-derri, which is a shame because the present portrait represents a rare example of a full-length portrait after Petit. Petit has clearly used the image as a vehicle for giving a more thorough understanding of the clothing and adornments of an aboriginal warrior, but also in order to show the use of some of the weaponry. In this sense, this portrait forms a complement to plate 22 from the same atlas, a more technical engraving which depicts baskets, weapons, and fishing instruments. Indeed, the three main implements being carried here are effectively identical to items depicted on the latter plate: the long barbed spear is shown as a "Sagaïes de trait" (lance); the elongated bark shield is depicted front and back, showing the base colour to be white with the crossing picked out in red; while tucked into the small of his back is a "Casse-tête de différente forme" (literally a "head-breaker of a different style", but effectively a mace or waddy).