Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens
The Royal Exhibition Building and its surrounding Carlton
Gardens were designed for the great international exhibitions of 1880
and 1888 in Melbourne. The building and grounds were designed by Joseph
Reed. The building is constructed of brick and timber, steel and slate.
It combines elements from the Byzantine, Romanesque, Lombardic and
Italian Renaissance styles. The property is typical of the international
exhibition movement which saw over 50 exhibitions staged between 1851
and 1915 in venues including Paris, New York, Vienna, Calcutta, Kingston
(Jamaica) and Santiago (Chile). All shared a common theme and aims: to
chart material and moral progress through displays of industry from all
nations.