Product Description
Split Point Lighthouse Aireys inlet on the South West coast Victoria. Built in late 1890 the lighthouse was first illuminated in September 1891.
Originally called Eagles Nest Point, it was renamed Split Point in 1913. It is a cement-rendered concrete and crushed rock tower, however the original drawings show that it was intended to be constructed of stone. The contractors, Messrs. R. Anderson & Sons (Anderson was a stonemason, originally from Scotland), had great difficulty getting materials to the site. An effort was made to transport materials by sea from Melbourne, but that route had to be abandoned, as the vessel employed to carry the supplies was wrecked through heavy weather on the coast. The stone was quarried locally at Lookout Hill and the ironbark timber was obtained close to the lighthouse.
The Chance Brothers (from Birmingham and the major manufacturers in the world of lighthouse equipment of the day) manufactured the First Order lantern and the 920mm focal radius lens in 1886. They also manufactured the dome and the lighthouse equipment, including the cast iron stairs and balustrades. These fittings remain in the lighthouse today.
The tower design is modeled on that of a chimney as this structure promotes air flow from the base to the top. This greater air flow made the kerosene (and later, acetylene) flame shine brighter.
This lighthouse was made famous due to the children’s TV show filmed on location. Round the Twist is a Logie Award-winning Australian children’s television series about three children and their father who live in a lighthouse and become involved in many magical adventures.
High Dynamic Range tone mapped image from 12 Mega Pixel digital file Canon 5D.
This image was taken in 26 January 2008
Image size for download is 4265 px X 28642 px as TIFF or JPEG file.
