| Place | Asia: Burma Thailand Railway, Nakom Paton |
|---|---|
| Accession Number | ART90846 |
| Collection type | Art |
| Measurement | Overall: sheet: 19 x 18.2cm; paper: 21 x 33.8cm; card: 34.2 x 44.4cm |
| Object type | Work on paper |
| Physical description | watercolour, pen and ink over pencil on paper mounted on paper on card |
| Maker |
Chalker, Jack |
| Place made | Thailand: Bangkok |
| Date made | 1945 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: AWM Licensed copyright |
Nakhon Pathom - alcohol distillery and vinegar plant
Description
The alcohol distillery and vinegar plant at Nakhon Pathom, Burma-Thailand Railway. The tent structure has bamboo framework and there are many contains and jars on the floor.
Jack Chalker, serving in the Royal Artillery, was captured at the fall of Singapore. In October 1942 he was in a party sent to Thailand to construct the Burma-Thailand Railway. Chalker secretly made drawings of the various camps and conditions endured by the prisoners. He drew and painted on whatever materials he could find or steal from the Japanese, hiding his work in sections of bamboo buried in the ground, the attap roofs of huts, or the artificial legs worn by amputees in the hospital camps. His work provides a candid and moving record of the prisoners' suffering.