Framed Memorial to Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith
Maker and role
Austin Byrne, Maker
Production date
Circa 1960s
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Object detail
Accession number
2003.489
Maker
Production period
Description
A memorial to the late Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith. Five golden stars approximately 280 mm high and 180 mm long, located on a blue fabric background in the formation of the star cluster known as the Southern Cross. The stars have an opal 40 mm in diameter set in the centre of each star. The memorial is mounted in a wooden case with a clear glass front pane. The memorial was designed by and constructed by Austin E. Byrne of Australia as a memorial to the late Sir Kingsford-Smith. It is a separate piece of the main memorial Mr Byrne created, which has been presented to the Commonwealth Museum, Canberra.
Brief History
In late 1978 MOTAT was presented this ‘Southern Cross Memorial’ made by Austin Byrne (1902-1993) of Newcastle, Australia. As a young boy, Byrne had become fascinated with Sir Charles Kingsford Smith and Charles Ulm after witnessing their plane, the Southern Cross (a Fokker Trimotor), flying into Mascot Aerodrome (now Sydney Airport) at the end of their record-breaking flight over the Pacific Ocean from the USA to Australia in 1928. Byrne spent much of his life creating a memorial to the plane, the pilots and their achievements, a piece of which is in the MOTAT Collection.
Byrne’s ‘Southern Cross Memorial’ is made up of five gold-plated stars, each with an opal centre. The stars have been mounted onto a blue cotton board and framed. When it was presented to MOTAT by Byrne, the stars were unmounted and instead placed in a padded presentation box. It is likely the stars were mounted for display in the Kingsford Smith display, which had been at MOTAT during 1978 until the mid-1980s.
Austin Byrne had been a vocal supporter of Kingsford Smith and Ulm’s record-breaking flight and his promotion of it and enthusiasm resulted in him being invited to New Zealand by the Government during 1941. Interestingly, earlier iterations of the exhibition had been displayed throughout Australia during 1938-39. Opened in late May 1941, the ‘The Kingsford Smith Memorial Exhibition’, dedicated to the Southern Cross was held at the old Legislative House (Houses of Parliament), in Wellington. Newspaper reports state the exhibition was also shown in Auckland. The exhibition showcased Byrne’s personal collection, including blueprints gifted to him by Kingsford Smith, a model of the Southern Cross aircraft, aluminium and bronze dioramas of the flights Kingsford Smith had completed, as well as a Book of Remembrance (also known as the Shrine of Remembrance) – a grand sculptural piece made from marble with a handwritten book in the centre – which had a record of these flights and congratulations from other notable aviators and public figures.
The exhibition, free to the public, also had a fundraising aspect – specifically for an ambulance for the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). Dan Sullivan, the Minister of Supply noted that this was “a very appropriate purpose for this exhibition”. By early December 1941, the Kingsford Smith Memorial Ambulance fund had raised £440 of the £600 goal. While the fundraising had also been supported by RNZAF orchestra concerts, most of the donations had come from the Memorial Exhibition.
Following this successful tour, Byrne took the Memorial exhibition to the United States. His ticket was paid for by the New Zealand government, as a gesture of thanks. After its tour to the USA, the Memorial exhibition returned to Australia before being exhibited in Amsterdam (the home of the Fokker aircraft manufacturers), and then returning to Australia for a final time. At each destination, the Memorial Exhibition was used to raise funds for public benefit.
Byrne continued to add to and enhance the displays as time permitted right up to the late 1960s. In 1970 the exhibition was given to the Australian government and found a permanent home at the National Museum of Australia in 1984.
The exact date that the Memorial at MOTAT was made by Byrne is unknown, however the pieces he created for the early Memorial Exhibition are well documented with no mention of stars. It is possible these pieces were created by Byrne in the years following the New Zealand exhibition in 1941.
MOTAT’s piece of the Kingsford Smith Memorial is one person’s tribute to the feats of early aviation, and a reflection of the wonder these flights and flyers may have inspired in those who witnessed them.
Byrne’s ‘Southern Cross Memorial’ is made up of five gold-plated stars, each with an opal centre. The stars have been mounted onto a blue cotton board and framed. When it was presented to MOTAT by Byrne, the stars were unmounted and instead placed in a padded presentation box. It is likely the stars were mounted for display in the Kingsford Smith display, which had been at MOTAT during 1978 until the mid-1980s.
Austin Byrne had been a vocal supporter of Kingsford Smith and Ulm’s record-breaking flight and his promotion of it and enthusiasm resulted in him being invited to New Zealand by the Government during 1941. Interestingly, earlier iterations of the exhibition had been displayed throughout Australia during 1938-39. Opened in late May 1941, the ‘The Kingsford Smith Memorial Exhibition’, dedicated to the Southern Cross was held at the old Legislative House (Houses of Parliament), in Wellington. Newspaper reports state the exhibition was also shown in Auckland. The exhibition showcased Byrne’s personal collection, including blueprints gifted to him by Kingsford Smith, a model of the Southern Cross aircraft, aluminium and bronze dioramas of the flights Kingsford Smith had completed, as well as a Book of Remembrance (also known as the Shrine of Remembrance) – a grand sculptural piece made from marble with a handwritten book in the centre – which had a record of these flights and congratulations from other notable aviators and public figures.
The exhibition, free to the public, also had a fundraising aspect – specifically for an ambulance for the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). Dan Sullivan, the Minister of Supply noted that this was “a very appropriate purpose for this exhibition”. By early December 1941, the Kingsford Smith Memorial Ambulance fund had raised £440 of the £600 goal. While the fundraising had also been supported by RNZAF orchestra concerts, most of the donations had come from the Memorial Exhibition.
Following this successful tour, Byrne took the Memorial exhibition to the United States. His ticket was paid for by the New Zealand government, as a gesture of thanks. After its tour to the USA, the Memorial exhibition returned to Australia before being exhibited in Amsterdam (the home of the Fokker aircraft manufacturers), and then returning to Australia for a final time. At each destination, the Memorial Exhibition was used to raise funds for public benefit.
Byrne continued to add to and enhance the displays as time permitted right up to the late 1960s. In 1970 the exhibition was given to the Australian government and found a permanent home at the National Museum of Australia in 1984.
The exact date that the Memorial at MOTAT was made by Byrne is unknown, however the pieces he created for the early Memorial Exhibition are well documented with no mention of stars. It is possible these pieces were created by Byrne in the years following the New Zealand exhibition in 1941.
MOTAT’s piece of the Kingsford Smith Memorial is one person’s tribute to the feats of early aviation, and a reflection of the wonder these flights and flyers may have inspired in those who witnessed them.
Media/Materials
Credit Line
Austin Byrne. Circa 1960s. Framed Memorial to Sir Charles Kingsford-Smith, 2003.489. The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT).
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