Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens are a pair of major landmarks in Melbourne, Australia. The Royal Exhibition Building is within Carlton Gardens, a 64-acre (26-hectare) park. In 2004, it became the first building in Australia named a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). A World Heritage Site is a place of special cultural or physical significance.
The Exhibition Building was built in 1879 and 1880 for the Melbourne International Exhibition, a world’s fair held in 1880 and 1881. The Melbourne Centennial Exhibition was held there in 1888. The exhibition celebrated 100 years of European settlement in Australia. The first Parliament of Australia opened at the Exhibition Building on May 9, 1901. It was also the site of several events of the 1956 Summer Olympic Games. In 1980, Princess Alexandra of the United Kingdom, a cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, gave the structure the title Royal, and it became known as the Royal Exhibition Building. The building is still used for exhibitions.
The Carlton Gardens is an excellent example of the gardenesque style of landscape design. Gardenesque style features plants displayed in formal, symmetrical beds. There are two small ornamental lakes in the southern part of the park, along with tennis courts and a children’s playground. The Melbourne Museum, a natural and cultural history museum, also stands in the park.
The Australian architect Joseph Reed designed the Exhibition Building, which reflects several historical styles. For example, the dome was inspired by the dome of the Florence Cathedral in Italy, which was completed in 1436. The Exhibition Building fell into disrepair during the mid-1900’s, and parts of it were demolished or damaged by fire. The surviving structure was restored during the 1980’s and 1990’s.
