AUS: Shrine of Remembrance

Birdwood Avenue, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Daily: 10.00am - 5.00pm

Rising above the greenery of Kings Domain, Shrine of Remembrance stands as one of the most significant landmarks of Melbourne. Having its foundation stone laid on 11 November 1927, the memorial was originally built to honour those who served in World War I, but has since come to commemorate all Australians who've served in any conflict.


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As I approached the shrine that was designed by two World War I veterans, the sense of scale became more apparent.


The Cenotaph symbolises the debt of the living to the dead, a debt repaid through the act of remembrance.


The shrine draws architectural inspiration from the ancient Tomb of Mausolus and the Parthenon.



The sculpture is called 'Peace and Goodwill'.


As I made my way to the visitor centre, I was awed by the gallery of medals.


The display stretches 40 m in length.

Red is the dominant colour of the visitor centre.



The photograph captures the shrine dedication ceremony with nearly a third of the city's population in attendance.


That's Anthony Lehmann's tee, a civilian entertainer who went to Iraq to boost the morale of deployed soldiers. 
The dimly lit gallery displays more than 800 historical artifacts.


The gallery is characterised by vaulted ceilings and original hand-laid brickwork.


Completed in 2018, 'Flowers of War' is made of over 400 steel brooches.

There's a section titled 'Defending with Pride' that highlights stores of LGBTQ+ in service. There's simply no place for discrimination against anyone, especially in today's world, and all the more so for those who serve the nation.



The 2009 federal law reforms removed discrimination against same-sex de facto couples and their families.
In general, the gallery is divided into four sections: World War I, World War II, Recent Conflicts and Peacekeeping, and Pre-Federation, which focuses on early Victorian military history.



With an image of dry leaves in the background, it highlights the difficulty of detecting mines.


Ethyl chloride was once used as an anaesthetic in surgery, but now it's only used in minor procedures.


The Changi Flag is a large Union Flag that serves as a powerful symbol of defiance, resilience and survival for Australian prisoners of war during World War II. Just weeks before the Fall of Singapore in 1942, Captain Kenneth Parsons removed the flag from the Sultan of Johor’s palace to prevent it from falling into the hands of the Japanese. It was then secretly hidden for the entire three and a half years of imprisonment at Selarang Barracks in Changi, where thousands of Allied prisoners were held.

Discovery of the flag by Japanese guards could've resulted in immediate execution.


Here are a few more photos taken inside the gallery,


The sculpture depicts six Papuan men maneuvering a wounded Australian soldier on an improvised stretcher.


If only I could flip through that book...


The centrepiece of the World War I section is an original landing boat from the Gallipoli Campaign in 1915.
 
The Crypt is a deeply moving space that honours the sacrifice of multi-generational Australian service members.


At the centre of the space stands the 'Father and Son' sculpture by Raymond Ewers.

Hanging as solemn sentinels are flags of the various disbanded Victorian units of the Australian Army.

Inside the casket are original donation receipts from the fundraising campaign in 1928 to build the shrine.
The Sanctuary is the most sacred part of the shrine with a stepped pyramidal roof.



The aperture is designed such that, on 11 November at 11.00am each year, a ray of light illuminates the word 'LOVE'.


That's the official flag of the Royal Australian Navy.
Last but not least, the balcony offers a lovely view of the surroundings.



The glass and steel sculpture depicts a poppy, which once grew across the battlefields of Flanders during World War I.
As I made my way down the final steps of the shrine, I felt like I just crossed a bridge between the past ans the present. The shrine is a must-visit where history isn't just remembered, it's felt.

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