Photograph taken during the formal opening of the Art Gallery of South Australia, formerly the National Gallery of South Australia in Adelaide. The photograph was probably taken on the north loggia of the Gallery and shows Prince Albert Victor signing the minute book as Prince George looks on. On the left stands Mr A Abrahams JP with Sir Henry Ayers MLO, the eighth Premier of South Australia standing second from the right and Sir Samuel Davenport on the right.   

The opening of the Art Gallery of South Australia on the 18 June 1881 by Prince's Albert Victor and George was their first official public engagement in Australia. The Prince's toured the gallery prior to the opening ceremony. On declaring the gallery open, the attending band began to play the 'Song of Australia' following which, the Prince's returned to Government House. The gallery, which formed part of the Public Library of Adelaide, remained open to the pubic until 4pm that day. According to contemporary newspaper reports, Mr Freeman of the Melbourne Photographic Company took photographs during the opening ceremony. There is a photographer's stamp on the photograph which is illegible.

This is a photograph from one of the nine albums compiled following Prince Albert Victor (1864-92) and Prince George of Wales' (1865-1936) world tour aboard HMS Bacchante from 1879 to 1882. The photographs were collected by their chaperon and tutor, John Neale Dalton.

The majority of the images in these albums are topographical views and architectural studies, loosely arranged according to the group’s itinerary. They include photographs of artefacts, local people and public figures, as well as portraits of the princes taken during the tour. The attempt to recreate the experience of a journey through such an assortment of images is common to many amateur travelling albums of this period. In 1886, some of the photographs in the albums were reproduced as engravings in the published accounts of the voyage, The Cruise of Her Majesty's Ship Bacchante, 1879-1882.