This is the Cornelius, which was one of the last of Broome's famous pearling luggers. The captain of the craft had asked me if I would like to go sailing for a day. It was an opportunity I was very quick to accept, for these boats - now few and far between - were once legendary in this area. I also have a very personal link with these classic craft: in 1949-1950, my parents sailed as missionaries in a similar lugger to visit remote Aboriginal communities along the Kimberley coast. This photo captures the Cornelius in full sail, surging with the breeze across an azure sea. Just days after the photo was taken, the boat sprang a plank at anchor and sank. But here it is immortalised in its glory - a legend of the sea heading out for adventure

Catalog Number: VX2833
Edition: 300
Image Ratio: 1:3