When explorer Matthew Flinders visited the spot he christened Port Lincoln in February 1802, he was deeply impressed by the pleasantness of its location.

"The port which formed the most interesting part of these discoveries I named Port Lincoln, in honour of my native province," wrote Flinders, who was born in the county of Lincolnshire in northern England.

"Port Lincoln is certainly a fine harbour ... of the climate we had no reason to speak but in praise."

One of the Matthew Flinders statues being created in the studio. ( Supplied: Flinders Memorial Statue )

Almost exactly 215 years since that day, a statue of Flinders and his cat Trim has today been unveiled at the now-thriving city of Port Lincoln in tribute to Flinders' famed antipodean voyage on HMS Investigator.

The two-metre-high work will be on permanent display at Port Lincoln's Flinders Precinct, near Flinders Archway on Tasman Terrace, and was unveiled by South Australian Governor Hieu Van Le.

The statue is one of only three castings of a design by British sculptor Mark Richards, who attended the ceremony.

Richards said the statue depicted Flinders kneeling and using his compass to chart his voyage along the South Australian coast.

"I've made him working," Richards said.

"His map of Australia is on the base and he's measuring a part of the coastline."

'Accessible design'

Richards said, despite Flinders' importance in Australian history, he remained relatively unknown in his homeland.

"I tried to imagine what it would be like if I walked up to a statue of someone who was largely unknown, and what I would want to pique my curiosity," he said.

"I came up with a design which was quite close to the viewer in the sense that it's quite low. It's very accessible."

A mould of a boot for one of the Matthew Flinders' statues. ( Supplied: Flinders Memorial Statue )

Businessman Roger Lang donated the statue to Port Lincoln's Axel Stenross Maritime Museum, which has loaned it to the local council.

Another casting of the same statue is on permanent display at London's Euston Station, beneath which Flinders is buried.

Mr Lang said the idea to make the statue was first put forward by the State Government in 2014 — the bicentenary of Flinders' death.

"The South Australian Government engaged Mark Richards to make a sculpture to enhance the knowledge [of Flinders] for English people," he said.

"Captain Cook they all know, but Flinders is basically unknown in England."

Lincoln City Mayor in the United Kingdom, Yvonne Bodger, has travelled to Port Lincoln for the occasion.

"The way I feel is almost indescribable — it's excitement, it's almost indescribable," she said.