The Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience – the largest travelling Australian exhibition in nearly three decades – will come to Geelong this month.
The free exhibition features 200 artefacts from the last century from the Australian War Museum, like medical gear, pilots’ helmets and a piece of the “Red Barons” plane.
Manfred von Richthofen became known as the Red Baron due to his habit of painting his planes red. He killed eighty allied airmen until an Australian gunner shot him down on 21 April 1918.
The exhibition follows the footsteps of Australian soldiers, sailors, airmen and nurses during World War I, commemorating the 2015 Centenary of Anzac.
More than 250,000 people have visited the government-funded exhibition so far, according to promoters.
The number includes 37,896 school children learning the history of those who served their country.
Major General (retired) Brian Dawson, from the Australian War Memorial, described the public’s response to the exhibition as “tremendous”.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for people to learn of the ways in which the sacrifice of our service men and women has shaped, and continues to shape, Australia as a nation.”
Geelong will be the last Victorian stop for the tour, which will conclude its two-year journey of Australia in April after visiting 23 towns and cities.
Roughly 400 people took two years to plan, design and build the exhibition, which requires10 B-Double trucks to move from location to location.
Spirit of Anzac Centenary Experience opens Geelong Arena from 21 February and runs until 27 February.
While the exhibition is free, visitors will need to register for tickets on www.spiritofanzac.gov.au or by phoning 1300 462 313.
