THE legend goes that on the eve of the Eureka Stockade on December 3, 1854, three women worked through the night in a tent to create the original Eureka Flag.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
To shed light on the legend and as part of the Museum of Australian Democracy at Eureka 160th Anniversary of Eureka celebrations, the museum initiated a project to recreate the Eureka Flag using the original stitching methods.
On Wednesday, the flag was flown for 20 minutes - the duration of the Eureka Stockade - from 6.20am while a crowd of 300 heard speeches from former premier and patron of M.A.D.E Steve Bracks, chair of M.A.D.E Kaaren Koomen and Ballarat Mayor John Phillips about the Eureka spirit.
Almost on cue, the wind died as the crowd started a minute's silence at 6.40am.
However, the task to recreate the flag proved to be much more than a night's work.
The Ballarat Quilters and Ballarat branch of the Embroiders Guild worked more than 200 hours to complete the flag: 41 hours to prepare the material and another 170 hours of needle work - equivalent to three people, simultaneously stitching, over nine working days.
david.jeans@fairfaxmedia.com.au
