Magna Carta Place

In 1995 a committee was formed to come up with a suitable design for a memorial to mark the centenary of federation in 2001. The result was the Magna Carta memorial.
 
Sealed by King John at Runnymede in 1215, the Magna Carta is traditionally regarded as the foundation of constitutional government and the rule of law in democracies. It had a number of revisions and reissues: Australia has our own copy, one of the four surviving ‘inspeximus’ issues sealed in 1297. (‘Inspeximus’ means that this edition was reviewed and sealed by the King, then Edward I.)
 
The design of the monument reflects an ancient English burial mound, cut open to reveal treasure within. The Latin words cut into the copper dome are excerpts from the 1297 Magna Carta.
 
We were the only visitors and the site seemed rather friendless and dispiriting. The rule of law and equality of all before the law – they are noble principles, but there seemed to be an awfully big gap between this monument and current world events.