Posts
Action man ... Mark Richards
works on the cast of the Captain Matthew Flinders statue that will take
its place at Euston station in London. Pic: Ella Pellegrini
THE skeleton of the man who gave
Australia its name and was the first to circumnavigate the continent
could be exhumed by rail workers on a new high-speed rail link from
London to the Midlands.
News Corp has learnt Network Rail bosses have held “high level talks” to discuss what action would have to be taken if and when the Australian hero is found.
The operators of Britain’s rail network yesterday declined to comment on the outcome of those meetings.
Flinders was regarded one of England’s most distinguished navigators and cartographers but the plot where he and hundreds of other noted or wealthy Britons were buried in July 1814 eventually became subsumed by a then-growing Euston train station.
No parish records exist but it is suspected his grave remains somewhere underneath what is now platform 15. The HS2 (High Speed 2) rail link between Euston and Birmingham is planned for construction between platforms 15 and 18.
Ironically the revelation comes as the creation of a giant bronze statute of Flinders is being completed by one’s of Britain’s most noted sculptors. It will be erected at Euston station to commemorate the explorer’s achievements Down Under.
Sculptor Mark Richards yesterday unveiled for the first time his almost finished unique clay statue of Flinders in an “action” pose to be cast in bronze ahead of its Euston instalment.
“I wanted to portray his ‘can do’ attitude,” Mr Richards said.
“I didn’t want him to look like a conquering imperial hero, I wanted him to be someone who is dedicated and very much an average person, a working man doing a job. I like the physicality.
“From this you get the sense he’s outside and on the ground so immediately the statute tells you he had something to do with cartography or mapping or navigating, an official, an active person and open-necked shows he’s where it’s quite hot. Lot of things come across in the pose that suggest his activities.”
The $200,000 cost of the project is being financed by the sale of a limited edition bronze maquette models of the sculpture, available at the office of the South Australian agent general in London.
The life-size version to be installed at Euston on the 200-year anniversary of Flinders’ death was aided by the fact Network Rail’s boss is Australian Sir David Higgins.
Distant relative John Flinders said the irony the statue is to be installed near where Flinders was buried was not lost on anyone but would give the man long overdue recognition in his home country.
Mr Flinders said Flinders’ original map of Australia was often referred to as the nation’s “birth certificate” since it was the first official document to carry the name Australia which Flinders suggested to London to replace Terra Australis.
“This statue will encourage people in the UK to known more about the man and his achievements … the fact it’s in Euston station with millions of passengers each year funnelling through and over where he is suspected of laying will put him and Australia on the map.”
The project was the brainchild of retired UK naval officer Lieutenant-Commander Peter Ashley after he came across his statue at St Paul’s Cathedral in Melbourne. He was amazed the man was virtually unknown in the UK and wanted a plaque erected. The idea evolved into a more grand statue.
The South Australian influence of the scientist and navigator, who died in 1814 aged 40, can still be seen throughout the state, with a university, mountain range, suburb and many streets named in his honour.
He also named many of SA’s best-known landmarks, including Mt Lofty, Port Lincoln and Kangaroo Island.
No comments:
Post a Comment