SKULL

The above image of Ned's death mask & skull is from an old OMG brochure.

WHERE IS NED KELLY’S SKULL?

With the story of Ned Kelly’s skull in the news yet again I thought it worthwhile revisiting this subject.

The news bulletin stated that Ned’s skull was being returned by the man who stole it from the Old Melbourne Gaol. (OMG)

The truth however is that Ned's skull may have been stolen in 1978 but it was not the one now being discussed.

I am most fortunate in that I have an old brochure from The Old Melbourne Gaol (OMG) that includes a clear image of a skull
said to have once belonged to bushranger Ned Kelly.

My interest was initially sparked after a simple comparison between two photographs both said to be Ned Kelly’s skull(s).

After significant research I concluded that we were three possible Ned Kelly skulls.

OMG SKULL. This skull was the one in the old brochure. (see image 1)
This skull appears to have never been buried. STATUS: Missing, could still be within the OMG or in someone's collection.

ERNEST KNOX SKULL (1) (BAXTER). This skull was hidden for years in the outback of Western Australia by a man named Tom Baxter and said to have been stolen from the Old Melbourne Gaol. Not Ned Kelly’s, most likely Ernest Knox possibly stolen from the OMG but not Ned's.

ERNEST KNOX SKULL (2) 1929 SKULL. This skull was retrieved by workmen who had scrambled for bones after opening a coffin at the site of the Old Melbourne Gaol believing they were Ned’s.

To determine which if any of the three skulls listed above was actually Ned’s we need to review some old history. After Ned was executed his body was hacked apart by medical ghouls and others. A death mask was made after removing facial hair, and then his head was removed. His skull was said to have been kept and used by a minor public servant as a paperweight (never buried).

Ned Kelly’s remains, or rather what was left of them were buried at the Melbourne gaol. (now known as the Old Melbourne Gaol OMG) In order to answer the question posed we need to ask yet another question,’ was Ned’s head buried with his body’? If his head was buried then it theoretically ‘could’ possibly have been the one found in 1929 (1929 SKULL).

If as I believe, his head was never buried, then it could not have been the one found in 1929 and equally true could not be the one Baxter has as this appears to be that of another prisoner.

Let me discuss each skull in a little more detail so you can understand how I came to believe that no one really knows where Ned’s skull is despite Baxter ‘finally’ giving up the skull he had in his possession.

OMG SKULL: This skull if genuine can be traced from Ned Kelly's execution in 1880 where his head was removed and given to a phrenologist for study. Phrenologists were quacks of their day who believed that they could tell the level of criminality of a subject by the lumps and bumps on their head. After this waste of time, the Phrenologist returned the skull to the authorities and from here it is was said to have been used as a paperweight by some public servant. The skull made its way from here to The Institute of Anatomy in Canberra before being acquired by the National Trust in 1971. In 1972 it was then allegedly placed on display at the OMG and was still on display behind a glass cabinet until 1978. It was alleged to have been stolen by people said to be sympathetic to Ned.

ERNEST KNOX (1)(BAXTER) SKULL: Tom Baxter has been running around the country for many years claiming that he has the skull taken from the OMG in 1978 and that it is Ned’s. He has been seeking publicity and not once until November 2009 offered its return. The skull had been kept in appalling conditions and regardless of whom it may once have belonged to, this is a disgrace. The Kelly descendants through Father Peter Nordon tried in vain to retrieve the skull to see if it was in fact Ned’s. The DNA available would have and will now prove beyond a doubt if this is or is not Ned Kelly’s skull. On returning the skull Mr Baxter told reporters that the skull got damaged on the plane and he will need to glue it back together. This man should be arrested just for his mistreatment of a skull, regardless who it turns out to be. A very well done ABC documentary in 2004 looked at the Baxter skull and was able to determine that it belonged to an executed prisoner (OMG) named Ernest Knox. It is possible that this skull was stolen from amongst the skulls on display in 1978.

ERNEST KNOX (2) 1929 SKULL: It is my belief that Ned’s skull was never buried, however this skull was found after workers discovered a coffin they believed was Ned’s whilst working in 1929 on the new Workingman's College (these days part of RMIT). This land was next to The Melbourne Gaol (now known as the Old Melbourne Gaol) where prisoners had been buried. Many but not all executed prisoners bodies were relocated to another prison graveyard at Coburg’s Pentridge Prison where Ned had served time also.
The workmen had seen the initials EK on the wall of the gravesite and believed that these initials were marking the grave of Ned Kelly. (Ned’s initials EK were never marked on the wall) Ernest Knox was also buried here and obviously his initials were also EK. The coffin was smashed open and many workers grabbed grizzly souvenirs. A skull rolled away and when retrieved many teeth were souvenired and in recent years a man was photographed holding this disgusting item as if it was worth keeping and even wore it around his neck like some hunting trophy.
The site foreman was disgusted with what he witnessed and retrieved the skull. One theory is that this skull was then sent to The Institute of Anatomy in Canberra. As with the OMG SKULL, it is believed to have been handed over to The National trust and put on display at the Old Melbourne Gaol.
This skull may well have been on display and be the one stolen in December 1978.

The OMG SKULL appears to be the most likely one to have been Ned’s, it is different to Ernest Knox (BAXTERS) and therefore we should be able to rule out BAXTERS as being the one in the original photo. Could the one stolen in 1978 be the skull of Knox? if so then what became of Ned’s skull on display?

If the skull taken from the OMG display was not Ned’s and is that of Knox, what happened to Ned’s skull? Assuming it was the one originally on display when was it removed? Did Baxter steal the wrong skull or was this one the one displayed as Ned’s?

I think there is a good possibility that if Ned's skull was actually on display that it was stolen in 1978 but is not the one now being tested. How convenient would it be for the person holding Ned's genuine skull to know a man has been claiming he has it and taking all the heat. That skull may well be in someone's collection safe and sound.

HOW CAN I BE SO SURE BAXTER DOES NOT HAVE NED’S SKULL?

Simple, the BAXTER SKULL has more teeth than the one originally on display at the OMG.

BAXTER’S SKULL shows all the appearances of being Ernest Knox. (according to Rewind)

The cheek bones of the original OMG SKULL (image) are consistent with images of Ned and the death mask.

A medical expert whom was asked to look at the two images commented that they were different persons.

Note: Noted Kelly historian Ian Jones believes that the skull of Ned Kelly should have been cut open to remove his brain.
None of the skulls mentioned in this article appear to have been cut.

Thanks to Sharon Hollingsworth (my editor) for her usual assistance.

The clipping above is from the HeraldSun 20 June 2010.

AN INTERVIEW WITH IAN JONES ABOUT THE SKULL.

BELOW IS AN ARTICLE FEATURING GLENROWAN HISTORIAN GARY DEAN.

HOT TOPIC: Kelly researcher Garry Dean with copies
of Ned Kelly's death mask and armor at his museum
at Glenrowan. PHOTO: Cheryl Browne

Wangaratta Chronicle.