Central Railway Station: NSW Coat of Arms Shield Reconstruction - May 2015

Key station entry point

The corner of Eddy Avenue and Pitt Street was designed to be a key station entry to Central since its construction in 1906, only a few years after Federation. To help passengers navigate into Central, the metalwork in the stone arches of Eddy Avenue and Pitt Street contained ‘Station Entrance’ signage. Both arches also contained the NSW Coat of Arms metal shields, representing the strong link between the railways and the NSW state identity.

Lion in the South

The 'Lion in the South' is taken from the three golden lions on the arms of England, and symbolizes both the sovereignty of NSW and the offspring of an old country. The lion sits on the red cross of St George. The state badge represents the origins of the founders of the Colony of NSW as well as the independence of succeeding generations.

Reconstructing a second shield

Sometime in the early 1960s the ‘Station Entrance’ signs and shields was removed from the Pitt Street arch. Still present in the Eddy Avenue arch, specialist metalworker craftsmen were able to reconstruct a second shield.

A second shield was installed in 2015, returning to pride of place in the Eddy Avenue arch.