Cape Dombey Obelisk at Sunset
Robe, Limestone Coast, South Australia, Australia
Image ID: AU-ROBE-0003 Photo © Ilya Genkin
Robe's southern headland was originally named Cape Lannes by the French explorer Nicolas Baudin but its name was changed by Captain Matthew Flinders to Cape Dombey around the early 1800's. Robe was founded by the South Australian Government in 1846 only 10 years after the Province of South Australia had been first settled, became an international port trading directly with London and later the site where 16,262 Chinese landed and walked to the Victorian Goldfields. Cape Dombey's most striking feature is the 40 foot tall red and white striped Obelisk which stands 100 feet above sea level, defying rough weather and decaying limestone cliffs at this dramatic point. Built in 1855 by local builder George Shivas at a cost of 230 pounds, the limestone was carted to its site by a 32 bullock wagon team. Originally mariners were unhappy with the white painted Obelisk, as it was still difficult to differentiate the marker from Long Beach's white sand hills and the limestone cliffs of the coast. In 1862 the Obelisk was repainted in alternate red and white horizontal bands and it can now be seen from a distance of 20 kilometres on a clear day. Given the South East coast's notoriety for shipwrecks, with 30 wrecks occurring in Guichen Bay in 1853 alone, the Obelisk was used to store rockets fired to distressed ships which carried life lines and baskets for bringing passengers ashore thus saving many lives. Numerous dances at the local hotels, including the Caledonian Inn, were interrupted as fired rockets were heard and revellers in their finery deserted the venue to go to the aid of floundering ships. Upstairs at the Caledonian Inn you can find scrolled teak doors salvaged from the 1857 wreck of the Koenig Willem. The Obelisk has been repainted several times, the last in 2002 by the Save the Obelisk Society.
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This image id AU-ROBE-0003 of Cape Dombey Obelisk at Sunset, is copyrighted © by Ilya Genkin. This is not a public domain image.
I'm Ilya Genkin - an internationally recognised Australian landscape and fine art photographer based in Sydney. My passion for capturing the beauty of nature and our world translates into striking photographic prints that bring life, emotion, and inspiration to any space. From tranquil seascapes to dramatic mountainscapes, each image is a reflection of my vision and dedication to the art of photography.
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