OLD PARLIAMENT HOUSE AND CURTILAGE HERITAGE MANAGEMENT PLAN 2008–2013

3. Heritage Values
Part A – Context
Old Parliament House and Curtilage Heritage Management Plan 2008–2013
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clerestory windows, demonstrates the customs and
functions of the Commonwealth Parliament (Criteria
D, E, & F). The former Members’ Private Dining Room
contains the remains of rare 1927 hand-painted
wall features (Criterion B). The furniture and internal
fabric of Old Parliament House reflect the everyday
use of the building for 61 years and the hierarchical
nature of parliamentry staffing practices (Criterion A).
Research to date indicates that the furniture in Old
Parliament House is part of a rare, intact surviving
record of heritage fabric comprising both furniture
and documentation (Criterion B). The significant
collection comprises: original documentary evidence
including plans; photographs; and files that are directly
related to the design, construction, changes and use,
provide important historical research information
(Criterion C). Specific spaces of the building are directly
linked with events that shaped Australia’s political
and social history, and have strong associations with
prominent Australians, including prime ministers and
parliamentarians who served between 1927 and 1988
(Criterion A & H).
Many surviving parliamentarians, support staff and
media representatives have strong associations with
the building and its contents (Criterion G). Its choice
as the venue for important recent events, such as
the Constitutional Convention 1998, also indicates
its contemporary social value (Criterion G). The
ongoing relationship with the Aboriginal Tent Embassy,
established in 1972, is unique in western democracy
(Criterion B). The entrance, as a venue for many
demonstrations, reflects the role of protest in the history
of Old Parliament House (Criterion A).
The use of Australian materials and labour in the
building of Old Parliament House and the manufacture
of its contents contributes to the promotion of a sense
of national identity (Criterion A). This national identity
is complemented with the inclusion in the collection
of the President of the Senate’s Chair, presented by
the Dominion of Canada, and the Speaker’s Chair,
presented by the United Kingdom Branch of the
Empire Parliamentary Association, as indicative of the
relationships that bind the Commonwealth of Nations
(Criterion A).
For these reasons, Old Parliament House has
outstanding heritage values that consolidate its place in
Australia’s political and social history.
The joint sitting of both houses of the Australian Parliament in the House of Representatives Chamber, 1974
Source: National Library of Australia