Broken Gipsy Moth propeller
Object numberM2004/017:107
TitleBroken Gipsy Moth propeller
DescriptionBroken wooden Aircraft propeller from Edward Lanes Gipsy Moth that crashed 27 July 1938, at Mascot Golf Club, Sydney. Piper Club VHUHQ. Embossed: MH GIPSY MK1. DRC.NO. DH 51801.
Part of a collection of around 200 objects, uniforms, letters, documents and photographs donated by Reuben Lane, related to his father, Edward Alexander Lane (1902-1984).
Edward Lane gave his birth date as 3 April 1901 though it was actually 3 April 1902. Most likely because he was only 17 when he enlisted in June 1919 (post-war enlistments continued for the ongoing protection of Britain) and he was required to be 18. Born in London's East End, he attended the Jewish Free School. In 1918, aged 16, he ran away and joined the British Merchant Navy, serving as a baker's apprentice aboard the troop ship Wyreema. At the end of WWI he immigrated to Australia, joining the Royal Australian Navy, serving aboard the HMAS Encounter. He remained in the Australian Navy until the mid-1930s at which point he started a business, Lane's Fibrous Plaster Works in Hurstville.
Edward met Catherine Jonas (Kitty). They married in 1925 at the Central Synagogue. Edward was a prolific inventor; he invented a prototype of the Ramset, an electric nail gun. Around 1937, he took up flying lessons and attained his pilot's licence. At the outbreak of World War II, Lane was told by an acquaintance that "Jews don't fight". This prompted him to enlist in the Royal Australian Navy in 1940. He was shipped to England and served as a pilot in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm, flying combat missions off carrier ships, leaving his wife and three children behind. During the war, to calm his nerves, Lane had developed an interest in Palmistry, an interest he kept up until he took up photography in the 1960s. He continued Palmistry (palm readings) when he returned to Australia and became quite a celebrity with a regular column in the newspaper and appearing on television. He won both local and international trophies and medals for his photography, and he continued to take photographs until his death in 1984.
Part of a collection of around 200 objects, uniforms, letters, documents and photographs donated by Reuben Lane, related to his father, Edward Alexander Lane (1902-1984).
Edward Lane gave his birth date as 3 April 1901 though it was actually 3 April 1902. Most likely because he was only 17 when he enlisted in June 1919 (post-war enlistments continued for the ongoing protection of Britain) and he was required to be 18. Born in London's East End, he attended the Jewish Free School. In 1918, aged 16, he ran away and joined the British Merchant Navy, serving as a baker's apprentice aboard the troop ship Wyreema. At the end of WWI he immigrated to Australia, joining the Royal Australian Navy, serving aboard the HMAS Encounter. He remained in the Australian Navy until the mid-1930s at which point he started a business, Lane's Fibrous Plaster Works in Hurstville.
Edward met Catherine Jonas (Kitty). They married in 1925 at the Central Synagogue. Edward was a prolific inventor; he invented a prototype of the Ramset, an electric nail gun. Around 1937, he took up flying lessons and attained his pilot's licence. At the outbreak of World War II, Lane was told by an acquaintance that "Jews don't fight". This prompted him to enlist in the Royal Australian Navy in 1940. He was shipped to England and served as a pilot in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm, flying combat missions off carrier ships, leaving his wife and three children behind. During the war, to calm his nerves, Lane had developed an interest in Palmistry, an interest he kept up until he took up photography in the 1960s. He continued Palmistry (palm readings) when he returned to Australia and became quite a celebrity with a regular column in the newspaper and appearing on television. He won both local and international trophies and medals for his photography, and he continued to take photographs until his death in 1984.
Production date circa 1938
Object nameaircraft parts
Materialwood, fibres (fabrics), varnish
Dimensions
- whole width: 270.00 mm
whole length: 975.00 mm
whole height: 105.00 mm
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Reuben Lane