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The Sydney Cenotaph is actually a memorial dedicated to victims of the war and is made of granite plinth with life size Bronze statues. The statues are one of a soldier at the east end and a sailor on the west is a grim yet creditable remembrance of the World War I days. The figures are represented with rifles guarding the tomb and they are at a stand at ease position thus giving an impression of guarding the altar. The position drew some flak among the critics but the designer was able to ward off such criticism by mentioning the fact that the structure and the figures were not of mourning but of celebration of valor and were engaged in guarding altar of remembrance. The seed of the construction of the memorial building germinated with the Soldiers Imperial League of New South Wales and the returned soldiers approaching the New South Wales Government in 1924 to provide support both financial or moral to built a memorial in remembrance to all those who served during the first world war and lost their lives in the process.
The soldiers were able to up mobilize a lot of cash and a substantial amount of money was added by the government for the purpose of the construction of the memorial. The term Cenotaph actually comes from the Greek Taphos meaning tomb and Kenos meaning empty, this was initially thought to be built for Whitehall in London as a large number of war heroes were buried there. However this raised lot of practical and emotional objections with the returned soldiers' league sticking to the idea of Martin place because the latter was a preferred spot for a large number of public rallies being held in the spot during the turbulent times of the war because of its central location.
The designing of the entire structure is credited to Sir Edgar Bertram Mackennal who was incidentally the first Australian to be knighted but the Sydney Morning Herald had somewhat erroneously attributed the design to Dr Bradfield though the latter had only worked with Mackennal on the stone base.
The construction work was done by the British Engineering firm of Dorman Long, the ones who were engaged in the construction of the Sydney Harbor Bridge. The memorial was perhaps a token of appreciation to the city which had provided them with grand opportunities to flourish.
Though the memorial has had its fair share of controversy but to this day it is looked upon as an object of respects and remembrance. Some important information Place: Sydney, New South Wales, 2000
District: Metropolitan
Orientation: State capital
Location: Martin Place between George Street and Pitt Street
Position: 33 53 S 151 13 E
Ref: 20069
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