Two rare artefacts will be brought out of storage for the first time in decades as part of the Australian War Memorial’s Remembrance Day ceremony in Canberra.
A scarlet poppy wreath laid by the Duke of Gloucester in 1934, and a cloth poppy handed to First World War veteran Stanley Mason at the memorial’s official opening in 1941, will be placed at the National Ceremony on November 11.
The wreath was laid at the memorial’s construction site by Prince Henry, the Duke of Gloucester, to commemorate those killed in the First World War and mark the beginning of work on the building.
It has since been carefully preserved, including regular freezing and treatment to protect it from moth damage. Governor-General Sam Mostyn will lay it during this year’s ceremony.
Shane Casey, a senior curator at the Australian War Memorial, said it was the oldest wreath in the institution’s national collection and had not been used in a ceremony for decades.
“It is very, very symbolic, as it represents so much about the imperialism of the day, the relationship between Australia and Britain and all the lives lost,” he said.
The wreath is kept in special acid-free boxes and must be handled with great care, Mr Casey said, adding that conservators had invested significant time in looking after it.
Rare poppy returns to the Australian War Memorial ceremony
The second artefact is one of about 110 cloth poppies distributed when the Australian War Memorial was officially opened on Remembrance Day in 1941. It belonged to Mr Mason, who had enlisted as a 23-year-old private during the First World War.
Mr Casey said it was the only one from the opening ceremony known to have been traced.
“At a time when it appears war is everywhere you look, it is so important for us to remember the sacrifices people made to defend our nation and why they did it,” he said.
“Poppies are such an iconic symbol of this – they are a very visible thing that help us to remember.”
The Australian War Memorial, in Treloar Crescent, Campbell, was intended initially to commemorate Australians who served and died in the First World War. Its collection later expanded to cover the Second World War and more recent conflicts, including Afghanistan, East Timor and the Middle East.
The site was chosen to overlook Parliament, allowing the nation’s decision-makers to see the memorial and bear the consequences of war in mind before committing to military action.
Senior historian Craig Tibbitts said the institution had continued to evolve as Australia’s involvement in conflicts expanded.
Memorial director Matt Anderson said the Remembrance Day ceremony would honour those who had served and those who had not returned home, while acknowledging the “horrendous nature of war” and the demands placed on service personnel.
He said the memorial had always been intended to serve as a memorial, archive and museum, while reminding people of the need to say “never again to war”.
