Behold!
Standing before you are the marble and granite depictions of Queen Victoria, the parks first edifice. This grand structure has four facades that depict the birth, reign, marriage and death of the Queen, whose name our state was inaugurated in 1851. Although requests for sculptural designs was received by many countries, this memorial was designed by sculptor James White who was born in England but resided in Sydney, Australia. I have provided a section of The Evening News newspaper from 13 April 1905 which covers an interview with James White discussing the use of the marble from his home in Sydney Caloola and comparing NSW to Greece through its abundance in marble quarries and their natural beauty.
Although this accession for the memorial was after the Queen’s passing by the Queen Victoria Statue Fund Committee, it was also supported by the ‘city beautiful movement’. At this time Melbourne had been labelled as the temporary home of Parliament at the Royal Exhibition Building until its official location was elected, which we now know as Canberra, a meeting between the two cities of Melbourne and Sydney.
The decision was made for the monument to be erected upon an artificially created mound, creating the impression of the first Queen that Melbourne had overlooking its city. This mound was formed through the removal of earth from Alexander Avenue and the Yarra River embankment.
This sculpture was officially unveiled in 1907 on Empire Day, also known as Commonwealth Day, but if you look closely on the foot of the statue at the front face you will see its foundation stone which was laid in 1905 by the Lord Mayor Charles Pleasance, the only official ceremony he partook in before his resignation in 1907.
Stand next to the monument and stare out to the city ahead, imagine the lower tree lines from the shrubbery’s infancy, gazing into the heart of this once new city of sovereignty.
Works Cited
Rose Stereograph Co. c1920-1954, Pathway in Queen Victoria Gardens, Melbourne, VIC, Negative photograph, retrieved 7 May 2019, State Library Victoria <https://viewer.slv.vic.gov.au/?entity=IE883648&mode=browse>.
‘The Marble City: Sculptor’s Dream Of What Sydney Should Be’, The Evening News, 13 April 1905, p. 2, retrieved 5 May 2019, Trove <https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/114058691?searchTerm=%27The%20Marble%20City%3A%20Sculptor%27s%20Dream%20Of%20What%20Sydney%20Should%20Be%27%2C%20&searchLimits=#>.
