The aqueduct

Carrying drinking water through open channels has a long history and the Romans of course had some great aqueducts, with their use of bridges being particularly notable.   Growing up, I was aware of the existence of some aqueducts forming part Melbourne's water supply system.     I now read that there was the O'Shannassy aqueduct in the Yarra Valley which is no longer used (see here and here).    

There was also the Maroondah Aqueduct, which I read was built in 1886–1881 to supply  water to the Preston Reservoir.  This, too, has been closed in a number of places and there's a walking/biking trail along part of it. There's also a disused section of this aqueduct that intersects the Yarra Glen to Christmas Hills Road.

Although in this era of steel pipes, we tend to think of this technology as a bit "yesterday", in fact there are still sections of the Maroondah Aqueduct in use today.   There's a reference here to over 30 kms of it still being in use (but my limited googling hasn't confirmed this distance).

Why am I saying this?  It's because, immediately behind Balgownie Estate (where we stayed recently), just a little further up the hill, a section of aqueduct is alive and well!    It's fenced off, and there are emphatic "do not enter" signs, but it most definitely is still is use.

Here's a link showing the location of the section of the aqueduct where it passes behind Balgownie Estate (the big while blobs are the accommodation blocks).

The Abbotsford Convent

It was a winter weekday, and impulsively we decided that we ought to check out the Abbotsford Convent.   Of course, we knew of its existence, but it's out-of-the-way for us and a little tricky to get to (choice of the horrors of Hoddle Street or a circular route through Kew).   The closest I had ever been to it was when I worked on for the tramways during university vacations, when there was a bus yard (long since gone) on the other side of St Heliers Street, which was a meal break location for the tramway buses.


I read that the Abbotsford Convent Foundation celebrated its 10th anniversary this year.   The Good Shepherd nuns sold the site in 1975, although the Good Shepherd Foundation still has a presence at the neighbouring Church and hostel, and the farmland became the Collingwood Children's farm.






The convent itself became part of the Lincoln Institute and subsequently La Trobe University.  The University sold the site in the late 1990s, and a residential development was proposed.    However, with State Government assistance it was returned to public ownership, and the Abbotsford Convent Foundation was established to own and manage it, with a focus on arts, culture and learning.

Convent bakery

There are now numerous studio and office spaces, and what is described as an extensive program of events. We enjoyed poking around the buildings and extensive gardens.   And, of particular interest to us (!), there are a number of eating and drinking venues, at least one of which appeared to the patronised by (may I say?) "artistic" types.    We had a pleasant lunch at the Convent Bakery, and were happy with everything.   But of course, we were there at a quiet time.  I can understand that it must get very busy at times, particularly weekends, which no doubt explains the rather ordinary reviews.

The Flag

What happens to the Union Jack and even the Australian flag if the Scots vote for independence   (and here)?  There was an article in the Australian about this (sorry about the paywall), but the essence was that if Scotland became independent, then logically the St Andrew's Cross would be removed from the Union Jack.    Then the issue would arise as to whether a consequential change would be made to the Australian flag.    Of course, this is all entirely speculation at present and involves several layers of "what ifs" ......

The article in the Australian suggested that the Australian flag could end up looking like the flag on the far right.  Well, maybe, but doesn't the blue background come from the St Andrew's flag?    Why would this be retained?   The stripped down Union Jack - assuming that this came about - would presumably have a white background because the two remaining components,  St George's cross and St Patrick's cross, both have white backgrounds. 

One possibility would be to take the opportunity to change the Australian flag, but the big question is, to what?   Please, let's not move away from the present flag until we know what we'd get instead.   And for the record I don't much like the design being promoted by one group (left).

Coffee, cakes and rain....

It was raining in Ballarat when we awoke, and it continued to rain for the entire trip home, via Creswick, Daylesford, Trentham and Woodend.     Bit as soon as we reached the outskirts of the city, the rain cleared - and we were told that it had hardly rained at all in Melbourne.

Creswick main street

At Creswick, unlikely though it may seem, there's a French-style patisserie (Le Péché Gourmand), so we stopped there for coffee and caramelised  pear slice.   After a quick drive-by of the Hepburn Springs to make sure they were still there, lunch at Daylesford was at the Food Gallery.  This gets mixed reviews, but we liked our meals (including gnocchi)..  However we were there on a relatively quiet and wet winter weekday, so they weren't under a lot of pressure.

Hepburn Springs - little has changed

We drove through Trentham, with coffee in mind, but none was obvious.   Since we had already stocked up on bread at Creswick so we passed on buying more at the Red Beard, but paused for more coffee and a chocolate slice (acceptable but not great) at Woodend before heading off on the last leg home.

Old railway wagons at Trentham - suffering in the weather

Images of Scottish Australia

The main reason for our stay in Ballarat was to visit the the Art Gallery of Ballarat's display For Auld Lang Syne:  Images of Scottish Australia, from First Fleet to Federation.

The exhibition comprises an extensive collection of materials, ranging from paintings, books, charts and photos to artifacts, bagpipes and even goblets.  It commemorates the contributions of Scots to the discovery and early exploration of Australia through to their contributions in areas such as industry and the artistic world.    Even Mary MacKillop had a Scottish heritage!

There isn't very much about the role of golf, but I didn't regard that as much of a loss.   However, it did have David Syme and Simon Fraser looking at each other, notwithstanding their reputed fall-out over protectionism.

At the entrance to the display is an explanation of the new Ballarat tartan!    This features prominently on the publicity.    It has only recently been officially recognised, but apparently new tartans can still be accredited.   The colours in it are grey for the basalt Ballarat is built on, blue and white for the Eureka flag and yellow for the gold mined in Ballarat.   Overall, it's a bit drab, but perhaps this is rather appropriate for this part of the world.

"Mad, bad and dangerous to know"

"Mad, bad and dangerous to know":  it is said that this was Lady Caroline Lamb's description of  Lord Byron (1788 - 1824), and it's been described as his "lasting epitaph".

I attended a lunch reflecting on Lord Bryon's life and times.   In the course of a fascinating and insightful discussion, the proposition was advanced that had Byron not died when he was 35, there would have been nothing else for him to achieve in life!

The times in which he lived were, of course, tumultuous, and perhaps contributed to a "live for the moment" attitude.


Byron opposed Lord Elgin's removal of the Parthenon marbles from Greece, and "reacted with fury" when Elgin's agent gave him a tour of the Parthenon, during which he saw the missing friezes and metopes. His poem, The Curse of Minerva,  was written to denounce  Elgin's actions.

28 June

As reported quite widely, 28 June 2014 (Saturday) marked the centenary of the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife in Sarajevo by Gavriol Princip.   I am no historian, but while this may have been one of the events in the lead up to World War 1, it was by no means the only factor involved, as discussed here and also here.

Latin Bridge

For Serbs, the day is also of significance, as it is Vidovdan. (St Vitus Day) .

Plaque marking the spot from which the shot was fired

Italian Masterpieces from the Prado

The exhibition at the National Gallery covers three centuries of Italian art, from the Prado's collection.    Of course, Europe was a different place in those days, with Spanish rule extending at times into parts of what is now Italy.

Titian, Salome with the Head of John the Baptist

I can't claim to know a lot about Renaissance art, but I certainly enjoyed the exhibition, in fact more than I expected.  It covers three centuries from Raphael onwards.
  
The captions are comprehesive, describing both the individual pictures as well as the various themes.

Raphael, Holy Family with St John

We attended on the Sunday afternoon of the long weekend, so of course there were a lot of people present.  Even so, it was not over-crowded, but we were glad we'd pre-purchased tickets as there was a long, slow-moving queue to buy them on the spot (this had eased off later in the afternoon).


However, with tickets in hand, there were no delays at the entrance at all.  If you think you may wish to return, ask for a pass-out as you exit into the shop.

Also, on display, just off the lobby, was also a special exhibition of William Blake's works, although mostly etchings.

And, if you go, allow a few minutes to admire the bears in the lobby area.  Kitsch, yes, but amusing.

The Edict of Milan

February 2013 represents the 1700th anniversary of the Edict of Milan.

This granted all persons in the Roman Empire freedom to worship whatever deity they pleased, assured Christians of legal rights (including the right to organize churches), and directed the prompt return to Christians of confiscated property.  Previous edicts of toleration had been as short-lived as the regimes that sanctioned them, but this time the edict effectively established religious toleration. 

Statue of Constantine at York Minster

Geoffrey Blainey regards the edict as one of the great turning points in the history of the world.  Lord Norwich ranks this decision, and the decision to establish Constantinople as capital of the Roman empire (dedicated on 11 May 330), as decisions which "changed the future of the civilized world".

Constantine's decision was influenced by the vision of a cross of light in the heavens he is said to have seen on 28 October 312  just before or perhaps during the battle of the Milvian Bridge, against his brother-in-law Maxentius.

In February 313, Constantine I, emperor controlling the western part of the Roman Empire and Licinius, controlling the Balkans, met in Milan and, among other things, agreed to treat the Christians benevolently. Wikepiedia states that it is debatable whether or not there was in fact a formal 'Edict of Milan', but that it took the form of letters by Licinius, a pagan, to the governors of a number of provinces.   However, John Julius Norwich (in A Short History of Byzantium) quotes the text of a joint edict.

Constantine's policy went beyond tolerating Christianity: he tolerated paganism and other religions, but he actively promoted Christianity, and he ordered the building of St Peter's basilica in Rome.     Laws such as one made in 319 prohibiting the murder of slaves and one in 321 proclaiming Sunday, 'the venerable day of the sun', as a day of rest appear clearly to have been influenced by Christian values.

Constantine was born in  Naissus (now Nis), in Serbia, and Nis proposes to celebrate the event this year.  His connection with York (see image) is that he was made a Caesar there when his father Constantius died there in 306, and he ruled Gaul and Britain for the next six years before marching against his adversary Maxentius, who held power in Rome and who he defeated at Milvian Bridge.

(Image from freefoto.com)

Burke and Wills

We appear to celebrate Burke and Wills, even though on most counts their expedition ended in failure.  I suppose they were the first explorers to cross Australia from south to north (if tasting salt water counts as getting to the Gulf of Carpentaria), but it does seem to me that this is a somewhat hollow feat if you don't make it home!  In his book, A Walking Guide to Melbourne's Monuments, Ronald Ridley comments that, "The heroisation of the two men out of all who took part in such an appallingly ill-managed expedition is a story without parallel in the history of such monuments".  Interestingly, it is Burke who is placed in a domineering position (apparently in line with his character!)
 
Yet I note with interest that their statue in the city square has been brought forward, so as to be right on the edge of Swanston Street.  I wonder if we were starting all over again whether we'd choose to use this prominent location for a statue of someone else.

However, there is in fact some justification for the prominence given to this statue.  It was (according to Ridley) Melbourne's first public monument.

The sculptor was Charles Summers, and the monument was originally unveiled in 1865 at the corner of Collins and Russell Streets but was moved in 1886 to make way for the cable trams.  It was moved to outside Parliament House, then to the Carlton Gardens.  When the underground loop was constructed in 1979 it returned to Collins Street and after restoration was set up at the corner of Swanston and Collins Streets.

However, I doubt if the tourists taking photos of  this monument appreciate that, at least for some of us, its significance is not the men that it commemorates, but the place that the statue itself has in Melbourne's history