In conversation

Mariners on the Margins | David Prior

Mariners on the Margins unveils a captivating and often overlooked chapter in Australian colonial history: the sealing industry that flourished in the deep southern waters off Tasmania from the late 18th to the mid-19th century. Contrary to popular belief that Australia’s first industry was built on sheep farming, this book reveals that sealing was indeed the colony’s earliest commercial enterprise.

David Prior draws on extensive research, primary sources including journals, letters, government reports, and oral histories to reconstruct the lives and struggles of the mariners—sealers, traders, and First Nations people—who operated on the margins of colonial society and authority. His work brings to light the complex social, economic, and environmental dynamics of sealing, as well as its profound impacts on indigenous communities and marine ecosystems.

David Prior studied Ancient History at school before matriculating to study Arts and Law at the University of Sydney. His thirst for learning more about the history of the modern era led him to complete a Masters’ degree from the same university in 2012. David’s book looks specifically at the sealing industry and the maritime individuals, including sealers, masters and traders and the relationships with each other and Indigenous peoples across the wide expanse of the Antipodes. One key element focuses on the near extinction of the seal population due to the greed of the Colonials and their over-hunting practices, especially around Tasmania. David is now working on a second manuscript dealing with a maritime subject from the Australian colonial era.

David will be in conversation with Interactive Publications CEO David Reiter.