Mount Macedon Memorial Cross, Memorial cross on Mount Macedon, Australia.
The Mount Macedon Memorial Cross stands near the summit of Mount Macedon, reached by a 4.0 km access road. The 21 m cross has a 4.3 m plinth and rests on a circular base 12 m in diameter. It is clad in pale yellow Wunderlich terracotta tiles on a steel base, and a tablet bears the inscription: "To the glory of God and in memory of Australia's sons, 1914-1918. Death cannot rob them of their glory nor time efface the memory of their gallant deeds."
William Cameron funded the construction of this memorial in 1935, creating employment during the Great Depression while honoring World War I casualties. The original structure later experienced deterioration that required eventual restoration work.
Each Anzac Day a dawn service is held at the base of the cross, where the war dead of 1914-1918 are commemorated. The cross became a symbol of courage and survival for many after the 1983 Ash Wednesday bushfires, and its Wunderlich tiles were chosen partly for their reflective quality.
The cross stands in a reserve near the summit of Mount Macedon, reached by a 4.0 km access road off Cameron Drive. The monument rests on a circular base 12 m in diameter, so there is room to walk around it. Conditions at this elevation can be windy and wet, as they were for the 1935 dedication.
The 1995 replacement was built as a visually identical replica, but in solid reinforced concrete rather than the original steel frame clad in pale yellow Wunderlich terracotta tiles. The tiles' reflective surface is what lets the cross be seen from the plains far below the mountain.
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