Navigation slate from the Euterpe written in white chalk within etched columns, set in a wooden frame with hinged door. Pasted inside was the Lloyd's certificate of survey (now in the library) for Euterpe dated 1885 (old number D-7). Position indicated: 77 degrees east, 44 degrees south: in the Southern Ocean.
Collection
Nautical Equipment Collection
Made/Created
Date made
1865 - 1897
Notes
Date: 1885
Lexicon
Search Terms
Euterpe, Star of India
Legacy Lexicon
Object Name
Slate
Material
Wood, Slate
Interpretative Labels
Label
This navigation slate was used on Euterpe to record the basic sailing conditions and distances traveled. The slate is mounted inside a durable hinged wooden cover to protect it from the elements as the details were recorded on the poop deck next to the wheel, log-line and compass. A paper record would have easily been damaged by spray or blown overboard in a gust of wind. Later, the details of the day’s sailing were formally recorded in logs kept in the chart room directly below the poop deck. The slate would then be wiped clean, ready for the next readings. The latitude and longitude found etched onto the slate place Euterpe in the southern reaches of the Indian Ocean, carrying emigrant passengers on their voyage to a new life in New Zealand.
