The load of rubbish that turned out to be buried colonial treasure

Wonderful watercolours: In 1876, a new conservatory with an unusual conical glass roof was built at Duntroon House to harbour some of Marrianne Campbell’s (standing third from the left, next to her husband George in the main photo) more delicate plants, many of which she painted. Three facsimiles of Marrianne’s original watercolours on loan from the National Library of Australia are on display. A real treat. On December 29, 1877, an unnamed travel correspondent for the Australian Town and Country Journal reported, “the conservatory is large; in the centre is a brick cemented pyramid, with tiers of pots in which are some very choice flowers, the whole surmounted on one side with a lemon, on the other an orange tree.” Luckily the conservatory wasn’t damaged by a wild hailstorm which wreaked havoc just before the travel writer’s arrival, “killing 40 lambs”.