The Sir Paul Edmund Strzelecki Monument in Jindabyne New South Wales commemorates the Polish explorer and scientist’s many achievements in Australia.
Sir Paul Edmund Strzelecki
Born in Poland at Gluszyna, near Poznan, on 20th July, 1797 Paul Edmund Strzelecki arrived in Australia on 25th April 1839. From 1839 to 1843 he explored and surveyed vast areas of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. While exploring the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales he discovered and climbed Australia’s highest peak, Mount Kosciuszko, which he named in honour of the Polish leader and patriot Tadeusz Kosciuszko.
He discovered gold and silver in New South Wales, coal deposits in Tasmania, investigated the possibilities of irrigation, measured the heights of mountains, carried out soil analysis and collected and identified many fossils and minerals. Paul Edmund Strzelecki was one of the first scientists in Australia to undertake investigations in many fields including geology, minerology, meteorology and zoology.
The Monument
The statue of Strzelecki was Poland’s gift for Australia’s 1988 Bicentennial celebrations. It is a prominent feature in the Jindabyne town park, Banjo Paterson Park, standing on a solid podium erected on a grassed area adjacent to Kosciuszko Road, on the foreshore of Lake Jindabyne. Strzelecki is presented as a standing figure, with one hand holding notes and maps, his other arm is pointing to the highest summit of Australia – Mt Kosciuszko.
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