The gold standard.
The Eureka Tower in Melbourne’s Southbank precinct is home to the Southern Hemisphere’s highest public vantage point in a building. (Featured image: @yuxuan_lee)
The Eureka Skydeck occupies the entire 88th floor of the building, which sits at a staggeringly high 285m above the ground. If looking down from that height isn’t hair raising enough for you, then the Edge—an opaque glass cube that extends three metres out of the building—will surely give you a fright when the glass cube suddenly goes clear.
The name of the building, as many Melburnians know, is taken from the Eureka Stockade, the gold rush rebellion of 1854. Subsequently, many of the design elements of the building have taken inspiration from this event.
For example, the blue glass cladding that covers a great part of the building is meant to represent the main colour of the Eureka Stockade flag while the white lines constitute the white lines on the flag. The red vertical line symbolises the blood spilt during the revolt, which was sparked by the death of Scottish miner James Scobie at the Bentley’s Eureka Hotel.
And the gold rush itself is represented by the golden crown that the Eureka Tower wears, which is actually the top ten floors of the building. In fact, the golden crown is 24-carat gold plated glass windows, which still allow the residents living up top incredible views of the city. But for us down below, well, we’re treated to another sight but only when the right conditions strike.
This photo was taken by a Sydneysider that goes by u/luo856 on Reddit when visiting Melbourne earlier this year. They posted the image to the Melbourne subreddit asking if this was a common sight and before the comment sections derailed into a Melbourne vs Sydney debate, it seemed that many Melburnians had never been witness to such a sight.
To tell you the truth, I’d heard of the Eureka Tower glowing or shining bright but had never actually seen it until this picture, which makes it look absolutely incredible although it reminds me slightly of the Eye of Sauron.
In any case, there it is. So, the next time the sun is shining bright (might be a while), look to the Eureka Tower and see if you can see it glowing above Melbourne for yourself.
If you’re interested in the views from the top, though, head across to the Eureka Skydeck website and grab yourself a ticket which is valid for up to one year from the date of purchase. Prices for adults is $25 plus $12 to experience the Edge.