Finding extra materials in a donation is not uncommon; frequently of little consequence, such items can be anything from a piece of forgotten scrap paper to a small folded napkin. Occasionally, however, a piece is found that only adds to the mystery of an already somewhat mysterious collection.
Found portrait of mystery woman. LA2010.032 |
The next stop for this investigation was in the museum’s archives within the Kiralfy collection. A.E. Kiralfy was the captain of the Ethie when she made her voyage to San Diego, and his family donated many of the documents relating to this voyage and the yacht itself to the museum. These documents were full of information: bills of health from a number of ports, including London, Lisbon, Puerto Rico and the Panama Canal. There is a captain’s log book containing detailed information on positions and weather conditions that the yacht encountered. Various certificates show where the ship went from 1938-1939 as it crossed the Atlantic and traveled to California. In all of this, however, a crucial thing was missing that might indicate who this woman was: pictures. There were no images available to cross reference this image of a woman with any of the extensive documents in the collection. Finally, one document shed a small amount of light on the possible identity of this woman: a bill of sale from 1929 at Cowes Port, London. This document indicated that A.E. Kiralfy was not the first owner of this yacht, and that a Robert H.W. Mander owned it before him. These new answers only led to more questions. Could this image have been on the Ethie before 1929? Could she have simply been forgotten over time?
Bill of Sale for the Ethie, c. 1929. LA2010.032 |
The Ethie herself is a ship that will also only live on in the memory of the museum. The last known document relating to the ship is one from the 1940s – it is a report of the condition of the ship after what would seem to be damage to her hull. Shortly after this, record stops and it is unclear what happened to her. It is possible that she was renamed and moved, or that she met her demise at sea. Whatever the case may be, the Ethie remains a piece of the museum – both displayed in miniature form and recorded in her documents. The spirit of this vessel will be preserved along with all of her mysteries, including this mystery woman.
The drawing is of Anona Joan Kiralfy, sister of Leon (A..E..Kiralfy) who sailed the Ethie from Chichester England to San Diego via the Panama Canal.
ReplyDeleteBorn Feb. 23 1909 in London Died Los Angles Feb 28 1962 Mother of my wife. Virginia.
Anona studied Art at the Chelsea Art School in London. An incident of notoriety, stowed away on a transatlantic liner, discovered and returned to shore on the pilots launch..
Her artistic ability inherited from her Grandfather Imre Kiralfy and continued through my wife and Grandson Graham Owen http://www.grahamowengallery.com/index.html
Fred Owen
Just to say Robert Henry Waterland Mander was my Mum's cousin. His dad was Charles Henry Waterland Mander a London solicitor & Clerk of the Worshipful Company of Cordwainers. Robet studied the law but I as yet have not found evidence that he actual became a lawyer. The Henry Waterland bit comes from a long line of Church of England Vicars in the family
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