Plockhorst's oil painting “Noli me tangere”, which is more than two square meters large, had a remarkable fate. Originally, Plockhorst painted it for the German Court. Later, it was to be exhibited in England, but on September 3, 1880 the ship "Sorata", with the painting on board, was stranded on rocks between Adelaide and Melbourne, drawing water into its hold to a depth of 5.5 metres. Much of the cargo was salvageable, but the artwork was completely encrusted by a white layer. It looked as if the sea water had decomposed the color particles. In this condition Prof. Francis Rouleaux, director of the Royal Technical College of Charlottenburg (Berlin) and Commissioner General for the German Empire, took it to Melbourne, Australia. When the Melbourne International Exhibition was prepared in 1880, the art dealer Alexander Fletcher (1837–1914) bought the painting for a trifling sum and took it to the restorer George Peacock. Peacock discovered that the white layer was just plaster of Paris from the frame, which had been dissolved by the sea water. He could easily remove it, and Fletcher sold the restored painting to the National Gallery of Victoria for a considerable sum. At that time, the three largest daily newspapers of Melbourne reported extensively on that clever move.