Lumen Waite 100 - Flipbook - Page 8
Treasures of Waite
Waite has accumulated a number of
objects over the past century. To some,
the trove may seem to be a slightly quirky
collection of oddities. But they are very
dear and important to us. Their monetary
value, virtually non-existent. Their worth
to our collective memory, priceless.
Out of the ashes
Plucked from the fire. Literally. When the Waite family was
preparing to hand Urrbrae House over to the University, piles
of personal correspondence were burnt on bonfires. Amongst
the papers tossed into the flames was the 1876 Bill of Sale for
the Waite family’s furniture, made in Edinburgh, including the
dining room oak tables and chairs which remain in the house.
Recognising at the last minute that the document might be of
value to the University, it was pulled (by an unknown hand) from
the flames and survives today – still singed around the edges.
Waite Insect and Nematode Collection
Formed in early 2001 through the
merger of insect and nematode collections
held by the University of Adelaide, the
Waite Agricultural Research Institute
and the South Australian Research and
Development Institute (SARDI), the
Waite Insect and Nematode Collection
has more than 500,000 specimens, some
of which date back as far as 1908.
Shrimp
On the western fringe of the Arboretum, under the shadow of a magnificent
Bunya Pine, you can find this delightful Silvio Apponyi bronze of Shrimp. One
of a succession of dogs to accompany Peter Waite, Shrimp was a white West
Highland Terrier, who today still looks up quizzically from the feet of his master.
The work is based on a photograph of Peter Waite and Shrimp published in 1908.
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