Well good evening to all of you lovers of artful architecture and dramatic design, I hope that you are all doing well today and capturing your favourite constructions or discovering new daring designs to drool over!
So I pushed myself outside yesterday with a mission and that was to get in some sunshine to warm my heart and spirit and although I had a couple of destinations in mind, I ended up wandering aimlessly through the amazing park that is Kings Domain and saw the Shrine of Remembrance in the distance and only ever having been up there once when I first moved here in 2005, I decided to have a stroll up to that world famous war memorial to have a close up.
More than a war memorial, the Shrine of Remembrance is home to many other features that have been added on over the years, and serves not only as a reminder of our fallen war heroes that participated in numerous conflicts around the world, but also as an educational centre (which due to our current lockdown is closed for business...) [//]:# (!pinmapple -37.826911 lat 144.974144 long My time with the Shrine of Remembrance d3scr)
The Shrine went through a prolonged process of development, which began in 1918 with an initial proposal to build a Victorian memorial. Two committees were formed, the second of which ran a competition for the memorial's design. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
The foundation stone was laid on 11 November 1927, by the Governor of Victoria, Lord Somers. Although both the Victorian and Commonwealth governments made contributions, most of the cost of the Shrine (£160,000 out of a total of £250,000; equating to about £ 9.6 million out of £ 15 million in 2021) and the the chosen building stone was granodiorite, the internal walls use sandstone,and the black marble columns are marble.
Beneath the sanctuary lies the crypt, which contains a bronze statue of a soldier father and son, and panels listing every unit of the Australian Imperial Force.
This is the view from the front as I walk up the 'lone' Pine tree lined Avenue to the Shrine, which runs off Anzac Ave from St Kilda Road.
The Shrine of Remembrance is the site for the annual ANZAC DAY parade and commemoration, held 25th April at 4.30am and is truly an awe-inspiring an spine tingling site to behold at 5am when it's dark and the Shrine is lit up with (pre-Covid) 500,00k+ torches, candles and the reflections of freshly polished war medals and dress uniforms being worn or held by young, old, rich, poor and everyone of every race and religion rubbing shoulders together as the haunting wails of the Bugle and bagpipes float through the silent air in the dark before the dawn as the services starts.
A.N.Z.A.C: Australian and New Zealand Army Coprps. Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and suffering of all those who have served"
Notice the Northern Tympana sitting directly above the 'Doric' pillars which is "The call to arms" and shows a winged goddess symbolic of Mother England is calling her children to defend her.
WE WILL REMEMBER THEM is in honour of the heroes that fell at Gallipoli as they landed on the beach at Gallipoli Peninsula, Turkey about 4.30am on 25th April 1915, but has since been used to remember all who fell in all the wars, those large and small, as well as those brave people who stayed at home to labour in support of the wartime national defence. https://www.naa.gov.au/learn/learning-resources/learning-resource-themes/war/world-war-i/world-war-i-gallipoli
The design of the Shrine itself was created and developed by 2 former war soldiers, veterans who upon their return had become architects.
After winning an Australian based competition against a number other architects and even artists which was launched in in March 1922 and had received 83 submissions, Philip Hudson and James Wardrop said that they had befittingly taken some inspiration from the the mausoleum at Halicarnassus to King Mausolus of Caria, in South West Asia Minor- one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World http://www.turkishculture.org/archaeology/halicarnassus-1086.htm and the Parthenon in Athens, Greece. https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-greece/parthenon
Despite the fact that Australia still faced serious unemployment and extreme financial difficulties following the first world war in the late 1920s and 1930s, the huge amount required to build the Shrine was raised within six months from the opening of the appeal in 1928 because so great was the gratitude of the people.
And so now I take an anti-clockwise walk around the ground level forecourt and base of the Shrine to first stand and capture the towering presence of the 12.5mtr cenotaph standing sentinel to the Eternal Flame, burning brightly through the Melbourne weather since Queen Elizabeth lit it in 1954 as a tribute to the fallen during the Second World war, which has been burning with very little interference ever since.
R.A.A.F: Royal Australian Air Force
A.M.F: Australian Military Forces
R.A.N: Royal Australian Navy
At the top the cenotaph is a basalt sculpture of six servicemen carrying a bier with a corpse, draped by the Australian flag. The sculpture symbolises "the debt of the living to the dead" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
The Eternal Flame, the second one to be built and lit in Australia at the time, was described as a symbol of sacrifice and of the perpetuity of remembrance. https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/eternal_flame/flames_aust
And the first inscription of significance I see on the west wall is this message that will be looked upon, read and be solemnly contemplated and remembered by a trillion people for a thousand years.
Let all men know that this is holy ground.
This shrine established in the hearts of men as on the solid earth commemorates a peoples fortitude and sacrifice yet therefore that come after give remembrance.
And despite the fact that that message states that the Shrine is on holy ground, during the much discussed and debated design and planning stage, some Christian churches also attacked the design as pagan for having no cross or other Christian element and Keith Murdoch's Herald, Murdoch reportedly describing the Shrine as "too severe, stiff and heavy, that there is no grace or beauty about it and that it is a tomb of gloom"... on the grounds of its grandiosity, its severity of design and its expense. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
And now as we head around to the South Westerly, right hand corner, we come across another entrance off to the side from the corner of St Kilda Rd and Domain Rd to find this sign pointing us in all directions around the Shrine.
The Shrine had been built on a hollow artificial hill, the undercroft (although at the time filled with rubble from the construction) provided a large space for development. At a planned cost of $5.5 million, the new development was intended to provide a visitor's centre, administration facilities and an improved access to the Shrine's crypt, as many of the remaining veterans and their families found the stairs at the traditional ceremonial entrance difficult to climb. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
So I get to the entrance to the Garden Courtyard and ofcourse being in lockdown no.6, it's closed, but I spy a gap in the glass doors and so take a few snaps of the internal courtyard, which was stage 1 of a redevelopment back in 2003 by architects Ashton Raggatt McDougall (ARM), this work included the addition of the Shrine Visitor Centre, a new underground entry and the Visitor Centre courtyard https://www.shrine.org.au/history-shrine-remembrance
The Shrine, officially opened before a crowd of 300,000 people in November 1934 by Prince Henry, the Duke of Gloucester and son of King George V, was discussed and debated by many people in the following years after the first world war ceased.
And now rather than writing down the information that my memory has retained over the years and paraphrasing, I am going to copy text straight from the source, so I can share this information with you as accurately as possible. https://www.shrine.org.au/history-shrine-remembrance
Created by the sculptor, Paul Montford, the statuary of the Shrine of Remembrance is made of four groups that mark each corner of the Shrine. Representing Peace, Justice, Patriotism and Sacrifice, the statues feature Greek and Assyrian influences and were initially criticised for having no Christian motifs or elements. https://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/melbourne-sculptures-war-heroes-memorials
And we walk around to the back of the Shrine, we see the wall of the entrance to the educational centre
And now at the back entrance off Domain Road, we see another grand staircase leading up to the Grecian style 'Doric' Pillars. The Doric style was the simplest and the oldest among the three. It was developed by one of the Greek races, the Dorians. The Doric columns had a crown or capital made of a circle topped by a square.
The shaft had twenty sides. Working well horizontally on buildings, they were powerful and masculine looking. the echinus is convex and the abacus is square. The height of the column is known to be approximately five and one half the width of the column. http://ancientgreecefacts.com/columns/
Above the pillars, you will see the The Southern Tympana which is "The Homecoming" showing Australia at peace. https://www.monumentaustralia.org.au/search/display/32488-shrine-of-remembrance
However, I did not walk up this grand staircase, instead I kept going around anticlockwise until I was at the South Easterly, left side of the Shrine and walked up these ones instead
to reach the second set of stairs up to the portico to go up even closer to read the inscription chiseled into the wall
It is a structure of square plan roofed by a stepped pyramid and entered on the north and south through classical porticos, each of eight fluted Doric columns supporting a pediment containing sculpture in high relief. The porticos are approached by wide flights of steps which rise in stages to the podium on which the Shrine sits. The east and west facing fronts are marked at the corners by four groups of statuary by Paul Raphael Montford, representing Peace, Justice, Patriotism and Sacrifice. The Art Deco style and motifs draw on Greek and Assyrian sculpture. The symbolism is Neo-Classical. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
Around the outer stone balustrade that marks the Shrine's external boundary are the 16 stone "battle honours" discs. These represent the battle honours granted by King George V and commemorate Australia's contributions to the following battles: Landing at Anzac (Gallipoli), Sari Bair, Rumani, Gaza-Beersheba, the North Sea, the Cocos Islands, Megiddo, Damascus, Villers-Bretonneux, Amiens, Mont St Quentin, the Hindenburg Line, Ypres, Messines, Pozieres and Bullecourt.
So now I continue on my anti clockwise journey, to see who else I will meet along the way and to study the significant features and dedications inscribed on the exterior walls along the Portico.
Firstly we see here on the Southern corner, the sculpture of "Justice' by Paul Raphael Montford, drawing upon Neo classical symbolism from Greek and Assyrian influences.
Paul Montford worked from the studio at his home in Bruce Street, Toorak. At his busiest, Paul employed several assistants who, depending on their abilities, helped him with modelling, carving, plaster casting, and the menial tasks that supported the making of sculpture; preparing clay, making packing cases, carting.
https://cris.brighton.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/212713/PaulMontford-pdf-for-web.pdf
Right at the very front entrance, a shot of the of eight, 5mtr tall fluted Doric columns https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
A shot of one of the numerous doors leading into the Shrine is the Sanctuary, a high vaulted space entered by four tall portals of Classical design. A simple entablature is carried on sixteen tall fluted Ionic columns and supports a frieze with twelve relief panels sculptured by Lyndon Dadswell, depicting the armed services at work and in action during World War I. At the centre of the Sanctuary is the Stone of Remembrance. This is a marble stone sunk below the pavement, so that visitors must bow their heads to read the inscription on it:
GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
I love this shot of the door 'handles'?
So I continue on, walking anticlockwise around the portico spiraling up to see what else I can find and as I do I meet the Art Deco style statue of Sacrifice gazing upon me in the disappearing daylight.
And then her companion, the Greek and Assyrian influenced Patriotism. by esteemed sculptor Paul Montford and this is a must read historical insight into the Sculpture https://cris.brighton.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/212713/PaulMontford-pdf-for-web.pdf
And then I continue around the Portico, this time looking out into the 4 entrances into the underground chambers captured anti clockwise
This entrance is on the North West corner facing the CBD
This entrance is on the South West corner facing St Kilda
This entrance is on the South east corner facing Toorak area
This entrance is on the North East corner facing Rod Laver Arena (famous for the Australian Open Tennis challenge)
This is one of the pillars that houses the spotlights, as like the Eternal Flame that continues to burn, these lights shine on the Shrine of remembrance all night every night to remind people just how lucky we've got it, the 2021 war of Covid19 we have to fight from inside our warm, comfy homes, bellies full of junk food while our brave ancestors instead lay in cold wet muddy trenches beside their dying mates, starving of hunger, eating mouldy bread and biscuits....😓
And then I sat for a while, staring out into the fading daylight as the setting sun disappeared over the western horizon, the lights came on, lighting up the Shrine in a golden glow
And as the bright lights of Melbourne CBD started lighting up the night sky in the distance ahead, I regretfully took my leave and headed off into the glittering lights ahead.
But I couldn't help looking back at the spectacular architectural and design masterpiece the Shrine Of Remembrance is as I slowly strolled down through the avenue of Lone Pine Tree which was planted in 1933 from a seedling from a Pinecone brought from the Lone Pine battlefield on the Gallipoli Peninsula is was planted in the Shrine Reserve. The seed came from a pinecone brought back by Private Thomas McDowell, 23rd Battalion, Australian Imperial Force on his return to Melbourne after the First World War https://www.shrine.org.au/history-shrine-remembrance
And although I've heard a lot about the Shrine of Remembrance over the years, I still did my research to give you the most accurate information, but I am not able to include it all in here as there is just such a broad array of fascinating material to satisfy your architectural appetites and design desires and I have barely scratched the surface here, so I highly recommend that if this blog has piqued your interest and whet your appetite for more information on this remarkable space, then please jump onto these websites to satisfy you desire for more.
https://www.shrine.org.au/history-shrine-remembrance
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrine_of_Remembrance
https://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/melbourne-sculptures-war-heroes-memorials
https://www.portrait.gov.au/people/paul-montford-1868
https://www.monumentaustralia.org.au/search/display/32488-shrine-of-remembrance
https://www.awm.gov.au/articles/encyclopedia/eternal_flame/flames_aust
http://www.turkishculture.org/archaeology/halicarnassus-1086.htm
http://ancientgreecefacts.com/columns/
Now I better go, cause I think I'm being stalked by a Lion....... 😅
Anyway, I hope that you enjoyed this brief encounter with a very long and adventurous history of the Melbourne Shrine of Remembrance and I look forward to hearing your thoughts about this historical and significant centrepiece of Australian war history.
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