I’ve featured Australia’s obsession with “big things” before, and now here’s another one – the Big Merino in Goulburn, New South Wales.
This giant ram is a monument to Goulburn and the surrounding district’s fine wool industry. It stands at the southern entrance to the town, located just off the main highway between Sydney and Melbourne, and causes motorists to stop and stare in amazement at the imposing behemoth.
But there’s a serious side to it. Wool production is one of Australia’s largest and most important industries and it is well-suited to our climate and conditions. There are some 30,000 wool-growing properties spread across the country from the north of Queensland to the mid-north of Western Australia and in Tasmania and the Islands of Bass Strait. With its permanent exhibition and gift shop, the Big Merino educates visitors about the industry.
Although the Australian Merino derives its name and basic appearance from the famed royal flocks of Spain, it is in every way a distinct breed adapted to the specific conditions of this country. It is bred primarily for its heavy fleeces of fine quality wool. More than 80 per cent of all Australian sheep are pure Merino with most of the remainder being part Merino.
The Big Merino is in fact a life-like model of Rambo, a stud ram from a local property, Bullamallita. Built in 1985, he stands 15.2 metres high, 18 metres long and weighs 100 tons. The frame is made of steel, which was covered and shaped with wire mesh and then sprayed and detailed in reinforced concrete.
Information source: The Big Merino Goulburn
