PUN WOO, CIRCA 1881-90 THE KELAT IN HONG KONG HARBOUR

oil on canvas, depicting the ship Kelat at anchor, flying the Red Ensign, The Peak of Hong Kong rising behind in the distance, signed PUN. WOO. PAINTER. HONG. KONG. No.84., later frame

The Kelat was originally built in Stockton, England in 1881. In 1903 the vessel was sold to a Norwegian company, renamed the S.V. Hovding and taken to Australia. The vessel was later converted to a coal hulk, and renamed the Kelat. During the Japanese air raid on Darwin on the 19th February 1942 the ship was struck by machine gun fire, causing the vessel to slowly sink about five days after the initial raid. The Kelat remains the only known coal hulk wreck in Darwin Harbour and has national and Territory historical significance in its association with the Second World War.