As part of this year’s Jubilee celebrations, project manager Imogen Broomhead and OVC Graduate Intern James Burman have been exploring ideas to connect Macquarie’s past and future in creative and engaging ways.

One idea led them to Watson’s Bay on a wet Thursday afternoon to dig up soil from the Macquarie Lighthouse, to be used at ceremonies in the coming months to represent the University’s link with its history, and insert into a time capsule along with other memorabilia for future generations.

A Sydney Foreshore representative gave the team a history of the landmark and helped identify soil that would be suitable, as much of the area has been landscaped using soil from other parts of Sydney, but some areas remain untouched. It was this ‘original’ soil that the team were  keen to collect, and happily were able to return to campus with a decent sample of.

The lighthouse is a traditional symbol of the University that features on our official crest to this day. Find out more about our link to Lachlan Macquarie and our ‘radical’ coat of arms.