Maritime Art Beside The Canal

Plans are in the pipeline to install artwork with a maritime theme to enhance the entrance to the Canal Basin.

The artwork will take the form of a marine buoy, currently located at Piazza Terracina, mounted on a granite plinth. The buoy, which is a similar design to the one that marks safe water at the entrance to the estuary, is to be moved and restored with a flashing light in the centre. It will stand on the plinth, which is to be engraved with a wave design, and will incorporate a section of the poem, "The Seafarer", translated from the Exeter Book, and interpretative information. The work will be located on the area known as Kings Arms Isthmus between Canal Basin and the entrance to Riverside Valley Park.

The plans, which have been submitted for Council planning approval, show the park entrance improved with more trees, new seats and lighting.

Proposals are also being developed for removing inappropriate fencing, and widening the cyclepath, as part of the wider Riverside Valley Park improvements which were developed from the public consultation held in 2003-4.

The cost of the cycleway and lighting are to be funded by Sustrans and Devon County Council. Exeter City Council has approved a budget of £130,000 for the rest of the improvements.

Our Maritime Heritage

The Northern Territory’s maritime heritage extends to all human activities connected to the sea and in some cases to inland waters and river systems. It includes places, buildings (such as custom houses), structures (such as lighthouses, jetties and wharfs) as well as shipwrecks, aircraft wrecks (in the sea), sites of maritime industry, objects, stories, archival records (about maritime matters) beliefs, meanings, artworks (maritime rock art) and numerous uses of the sea.

The Northern Territory has a rich, diverse and interesting maritime history which began with the arrival of Indigenous Australians some 60,000 years ago. It includes Australia’s first maritime industry, the ‘trepang trade’, introduced by the ‘ Macassans’ (the 18th and 19th century monsoon traders of Indonesia), who first visited our shores (c.1700-1907) before European occupation (1788) to collect marine products which were traded as far as China.

Maritime heritage is an important part of our identity. Other activities associated with the sea, other than trade include fishing, pearling, shipping, underwater communication cables, military campaigns (WWII), immigration, refugees (the American war in Vietnam) and tourism. All of these have helped shape our identity and locate us firmly in our region.