Grand Carousel | Luna Park Merry Go Round |
A treasure in her own right, the Carousel has been a working centrepiece of the park for 101 years (1923).
Visually stunning, her 68 horses and 2 chariots are individually hand painted and intricately decorated.
Ride on the magnificent horses that your grandparents enjoyed all those years ago and be part of the magic of the Carousel.
Heritage-listed Each horse is unique and has a name Manufactured in 1913 by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company In the centre is a Limonaire Freres organ made in 1909History
Luna Park's Merry Go Round, the Grand Carousel original home was White City in Sydney before coming to Luna Park in 1923.
PTC#30, the thirtieth machine made by the Philadelphia Toboggan Company (PTC) in Pennsylvania, USA, was built in 1913. The carousel was specially ordered by entrepreneur, Cozens Spencer, for his new, White City amusement park in Sydney, Australia. In 1913 it cost him US$14,657.00 plus shipping!
The Grand Carousel was one of Philadelphia Toboggan Company's finest four-row machines and the only one exported.
Like a giant puzzle, the huge carousel, complete with cast iron machinery and hundreds of timber parts, set sail from America in October, 1913 and arrived in Sydney in November. Ten years later PTC#30 came to Melbourne for the grand re-opening of Luna Park in 1923.
The carousel was one of PTC's "high class"rides, a grand machine designed for a permanent location. With a platform 52 feet in diameter, it still has the original 68 horses four abreast, 2 Roman chariots, elaborate decoration and 36 cherubs frozen in flight on the rounding boards. 26 original scenery paintings adorn the center panels and rounding boards, painted by PTC's Max Soltmann.
During a recent restoration of PTC#30, it was discovered that much of the original paint was in tact on the majority of horses, rounding boards and center panels.
Company ledgers confirm that much of this work was done by PTC's head painter of 30 years, Gustav Weiss.
It is still the largest and most ornate of the 24 carousels known to survive in Australia. It has been repainted 24 times.
From 1977-2002 a $2.2m restoration of the carousel was completed, under Nigel Lewis, conservation architect.
All 68 horses, two chariots, 25 scenery paintings and 35 plaster cherubs were fastidiously conserved.
The carousel includes a band organ manufactured by Limonair, Paris in an impressive Art Nouveau case.
❊ Venue | Location ❊
Luna Park [ view ]18 Lower Esplanade St Kilda Victoria 3182 View Map
Telephone: 9525 5033
❊ Web Links ❊
➼ Grand Carousel | Luna Park Merry Go Round
➼ History Luna Park Carousel
❊ Also See... ❊
➼ Luna Park
Disclaimer: Check with the venue (web links) before making plans, travelling or buying tickets.
Accessibility: Contact the venue for accessibility information.
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