Australian Turkish Friendship Memorial facts for kids
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| Coordinates | 37°49′42″S 144°58′26″E / 37.828318°S 144.973953°E |
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| Location | Kings Domain on Birdwood Ave, Melbourne |
| Designer | Matthew Harding |
| Material | Stainless steel, granite, copper, bluestone pebble |
| Height | 3.8 m |
| Website | https://atfms.org.au/ |
The Australian Turkish Friendship Memorial (Seeds of Friendship) is a special monument in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. You can find it in Kings Domain on Birdwood Avenue. This memorial was built to celebrate 100 years since ANZAC Day and to honor the friendship between Australia and Turkey.
What the Memorial Looks Like
The main part of the memorial is a sculpture shaped like a crescent moon. It looks like a fancy wreath made from strong, shiny stainless steel woven together. This woven steel reminds us of the soldiers who died in wars. You can even place poppies onto this part of the sculpture.
In front of the wreath, there are two large stone shapes. These are called "seed pods." One looks like a seed pod from an Australian casuarina tree, and the other looks like a Turkish pinecone. They are carved by hand from light-colored granite. These seed pods stand for the future and the friendship between the two countries.
The "pine needles" on the seed pods are made of copper. They have special quotes engraved on them from soldiers and their families. The ground around the monument has a beautiful mosaic pattern made from small bluestone pebbles. The whole monument is about 3.8 meters tall. Around its base, there are important words from the former Turkish President, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, about how people can become friends again after a conflict.
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Australian Turkish Friendship Memorial (side view)
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Bluestone pebble mosaic with granite seed pods
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Hand carved granite Australian casuarina seed pod
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Hand carved granite Turkish pinecone seed pod
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Copper etched pine needles with engraved quotes
How the Memorial Was Made
The idea for this monument came from the Turkish Sub-branch of the Victorian RSL in 2014. They asked a sculptor named Matthew Harding to design and build it. Money for the project came from both the Australian state and federal governments.
Matthew Harding said that the monument shows a very important part of remembrance services. It represents honoring those who have died and placing a wreath to remember them. The memorial was officially opened on April 13, 2015. This was just before the 100th anniversary of Anzac Day.
