Melbourne Architecture

OLD MELBOURNE GAOL

Russell Street between Victoria Street and La Trobe Street, Melbourne. Phone: 03 9663 7228. Built in 1841, now a penal museum run by the Victorian branch of the National Trust. The building has three tiers of cells with catwalks around the upper levels. Its most famous inmate was the notorious bushranger Ned Kelly, who was hanged here in 1880. His scaffold, death mask and one of the four suits of armour used by his gang are displayed in a ground-floor cell. Evening candlelight tours are a popular with both locals and visitors who truly enjoy this touch of macabre Melbourne nightlife. Allow up to an hour for your visit. Opens every day from 09:30 am to 04:30 pm except Good Friday and Christmas Day. Night tour performances Wednesday and Sunday evenings when the suggested age minimum is 12 years. Self guided day tours admission price $AU12.50 adult and $AU7.50 child; candlelight night performances $AU18.70 adult and $AU11 for chidren under 16 years. Reservations are essential.

OLD TREASURY BUILDING AND GOLD TREASURY MUSEUM

Corner Spring Street and Macarthur Street, Melbourne. Phone 03 9651 2233. Built in 1858, the city’s first Italian Renaissance building with the majority of Melburnians considering that its elegance has not been surpassed by anything built in Melbourne since. The neoclassical bluestone and sandstone building was built to hold the gold that was pouring into Melbourne from the Ballarat and Bendigo mines. Architect J. J. Clark designed the building when he was only 19 years of age, incorporating subterranean vaults protected by iron bars and foot-thick walls. The Melbourne Exhibition now occupies the entire ground floor, taking you from Melbourne’s Aboriginal times to the present with relics from Melbourne past, borrowed from public and private collections. Not to be missed is the “Built on Gold” show staged in the vaults themselves. Opens Monday to Friday from 09:00 am to 05:00 pm, Saturday & Sunday from 10:00 am to 04:00 pm. Admission $AU8.50 adult and $AU5 child.

WINDSOR HOTEL

103 Spring Street between Bourke Street and Little Collins Street, Melbourne. Phone 03 9633 6000. Opened in 1883 as The Grand Hotel. Whilst the Windsor has undergone a name change it remains the city’s grandest historic hotel. Not just a grand hotel, the Windsor is home to one of Melbourne's proudest institutions, the ritual of afternoon tea served daily between 03:30 pm & 05:30 pm. Ask about themed buffet teas served on weekends, such as the Chocolate Indulgence with a vast selection of chocolates, chocolate cakes and chocolate desserts. Although the Grand Dining Room, a belle-époque extravaganza with a gilded ceiling and seven glass cupolas is open only to private functions, try to steal a look; it is well worth the effort and subterfuge.

ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL

Corner Swanston Street and Flinders Street, Melbourne. Phone: 03 9650 3791. Gothic Revival cathedral. This 1892 headquarters of Melbourne's Anglican faith is regarded as one of the most important works of William Butterfield, a leader of the Gothic Revival style in England. The interior is highly decorative, right down to the patterned floor tiles. The English organ is particularly noteworthy. Outside the cathedral is a statue of Matthew Flinders, the first seaman to circumnavigate the Australian coastline, completing the voyage between 1801 and 1803. Opens weekdays from 07:00 am to 06:00 pm, Saturday from 08:30 am to 05:00 pm and Sunday from 08:00 am to 07:30 pm.

SAINT PATRICK’S CATHEDRAL

Corner Gisborne Street and Cathedral Place, between Macarthur Street and the north end of Fitzroy Gardens, Melbourne. Phone: 03 9662 2233. Ireland supplied Australia with many of its early immigrants, more than ever during the Irish potato famine in the middle of the 19th century. Melbourne's Roman Catholic Cathedral is closely associated with Irish Catholicism in Australia. A statue of the Irish patriot Daniel O'Connell stands proudly in the courtyard. Construction of the Gothic Revival building began in 1858 and took 82 years to complete. Opens weekdays from 6:30 am to 05:00 pm and on weekends from 07:15 am to 07:00 pm.

ROYAL ARCADE

355 Bourke Street, south side of the mall, Melbourne. Built in 1870. Melbourne’s oldest shopping mall. Despite alterations, it retains an airy, graceful elegance, that touch of class notably lacking in more modern shopping centres. Walk about 10 metres into the arcade, turn around, and look up to see the statues of Gog and Magog, the mythical monsters that toll the hour on either side of Gaunt's Clock. At the far end of the arcade is a wrought-iron portico from the same period, one of the few remaining examples of the many verandas that once adorned Melbourne’s city centre.

FEDERATION SQUARE

Corner Swanston and Flinders Streets, Melbourne. Phone 03 9639 2800. Federation Square is a central and unifying public space, a landmark and a cultural magnet bringing together exquisite gardens, innovative architecture and engineering. Filling an entire city block, Federation Square's creative mix of attractions embody all that is wonderful about Victoria: fine art, fine hospitality, fine flora, bold design and vibrant events. Close by is the Ian Potter Centre incorporating the National Gallery of Victoria, ACMI, the Australian Thoroughbred Racing Museum, SBS, Melbourne Visitor Centre, cafes and restaurants.

FLINDERS STREET STATION

Corner Flinders Street and Swanston Street which becomes St Kilda Road, just north of the Princess Bridge over the Yarra River. Melbourne’s eqivalent to Central Station, designed by the winner of a 1899 competition. Melburnians use the clocks on the front of this grand Edwardian hub of Melbourne's suburban rail network as a favoured meeting place. When it was proposed to replace the famous clocks with television screens, uproar ensued. Today, there are both clocks and screens.

THE BLOCK ARCADE

280-286 Collins Street, Runs between Collins Street and Elizabeth Street, Melbourne. Phone 03 9654 5244. Melbourne’s principal shopping arcade built in 1891. The grandest arcade of them all, featuring huge ceiling murals and intricate mosaic floors. Walking up and down this section of Collins Street in the late afternoon or on Saturday morning was a favourite pastime between 1870 and 1918. The Block is famous for its arcades, modelled on those of Paris, London and Milan.

MELBOURNE CITY BATHS

Corner Swanston Street and Franklin Street, Melbourne. This Edwardian building circa 1903 still functions as a health and fitness center, containing a high calibre gymnasium and a plethora of other sporting facilities which complement the existing swimming pools. Casual rates for a swim are $AU4 adult, $AU3.20 student and $AU2 pensioner.

MELBOURNE TOWN HALL

Corner Swanston Street and Collins Street, Melbourne. Built in 1870. Free tours Monday to Friday at 11:00 am & 01:00 pm, first Saturday of each month at 11:00 am, noon, 01:00 pm and 02:00 pm. You need to book a minimum of one day ahead on phone number 03 9658 9658.

NATIONAL POST MASTER GALLERY

321 Exhibition Street, enter from La Trobe Street, Melbourne. The collection includes Australia’s National Philatelic Collection. Opens Tuesdays to Fridays from 10:00 am to 05:00 pm, Saturday to Monday from noon to 05:00 pm. Admission is free.

STATE LIBRARY OF VICTORIA

Swanston Street between Little Lonsdale and La Trobe Streets, Melbourne. Built in stages commencing in 1854, boasts a classical revival façade. Opens Monday to Thursday from 10:00 am to 09:00 pm, Friday to Sunday from 10:00 am to 06:00 pm.

SAINT PETER'S CHURCH

Corner Albert and Nicholson Streets, Melbourne. Two years after St. Peter's was built in 1846, Melbourne was proclaimed a city from its steps. The church, one of Melbourne's oldest buildings is located at the top end of Parliament Gardens.

MANCHESTER UNITY BUILDING

Corner Swanston Street and Collins Street, Melbourne. This 1930s Gothic building was once Melbourne’s tallest.

ST MICHAEL’S UNITING CHURCH

Corner Collins Street and Russell Road, Melbourne. Romanesque style church built in 1866.

ROYAL EXHIBITION BUILDING

Built for the Great Exhibition of 1880.