 | ||
Kangaroo emblems and popular culture deals with how the kangaroo has become a recognisable symbol of Australia, both within Australia itself, and internationally. It also deals with the various uses which have been made of the image and name of the kangaroo.
Contents
European first encounters
The kangaroo was considered a unique oddity when Captain Cook's HMB Endeavour arrived back in England in 1771 with a specimen on board. Over time it has come to symbolise Australia and Australian values.
Joseph Banks, the naturalist on the Endeavour voyage, commissioned George Stubbs to paint a portrait of the kangaroo specimen. When the official account of the voyage was published in 1773, it was illustrated with an engraving of Stubbs' kangaroo. From that time on, the kangaroo quickly came to symbolise the Australian continent, appearing in exhibitions, collections, art and printed works across Europe.
Kangaroo status
It took a long time for the kangaroo to achieve official recognition in Australia. Despite being a "declared noxious animal" because of its reputation for damaging crops and fences and competing with domestic animals for resources, the kangaroo finally achieved official recognition with its inclusion on Australia's coat of arms in 1908. The kangaroo is now popularly regarded as Australia’s unofficial animal emblem.
The kangaroo has appeared on coins and emblems, been used in logos, architectural decoration, the decorative arts and public art, been a mascot and used in the naming of sports teams. Kangaroos also appear in books, television series, films, cartoons, games and songs.
Kangaroo emblems and logos
The kangaroo and emu are bearers on the Australian Coat of Arms. It has been claimed these animals were chosen to signify a country moving 'forward' because of a common belief that neither can move backward.
Two red kangaroos serve as bearers to the Coat of Arms of Western Australia.
Australia's national airline, Qantas, uses a bounding kangaroo for its logo. The kangaroo has always been part of the Qantas logo, and the airline has previously been known informally as "The Flying Kangaroo".
Tourism Australia makes use of the kangaroo in its logo to "help ensure instant recognition for Australia around the world".
The Australian Grown logo uses a golden kangaroo in a green triangle to show that a product is made or grown in Australia.
The Royal Australian Air Force roundel features a bounding red kangaroo.
Warships of the Royal Australian Navy have red kangaroo symbols (based on the kangaroo on the reverse of the Australian penny) fixed to either side of their superstructure or funnel. This originated during the Korean War: as the destroyer HMAS Anzac was repeatedly mistaken for a British warship, her executive officer had a brass 'weathervane' in the shape of a kangaroo made and mounted to the ship's mainmast.
The kangaroo is part of the official emblem of the Royal Australian Regiment with a kangaroo in between two Lee–Enfield bolt-action rifles.
The Victorian Coat of Arms includes the upper portion of a kangaroo holding an Imperial Crown in its paws.
The red kangaroo is the animal emblem of the Northern Territory.
The kangaroo is the official emblem of Northern Territory Police.
British clothing and headwear company Kangol, known for its berets, features a kangaroo in its logo.
Kangaroos and coins
The kangaroo has been featured on pre-decimal coins, and on decimal coins.
The Kangaroo was featured on the Australian pre-decimal penny coin.
The Kangaroo was also featured on the Australian pre-decimal half-penny coin.
Five Kangaroos are featured on the Australian one dollar coin
Kangaroo mascots in Australia
The Boxing kangaroo – mascot for the Australia II team in the 1983 America's Cup. This rendition of the kangaroo has become a sporting icon, known informally as the green and gold "Sporting Kangaroo", and is highly popular with cricket crowds and international sporting events which feature Australian participation.
Matilda, the mascot at the 1982 Commonwealth Games held in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, was represented by both a cartoon kangaroo and a 13-metre high (42 feet 8 inches) mechanical kangaroo (which winked at the spectators during the opening and closing ceremonies). The 'medal', which was worn by both the cartoon and mechanical versions of Matilda, features the 1982 Commonwealth Games logo — a stylised representation of a kangaroo bounding (in "flight") – similar to the pose of the kangaroo featured on the pre-decimal half-penny coin.
During the First World War, pet kangaroos and toy kangaroos were a popular choice of mascot for Australian servicemen.
Public art and sculpture
Kangaroo motifs have been used as a form of public art.
Notable examples include:
Victorian lamp post (1880) in front of the Royal Exhibition Building at the Carlton Gardens in Carlton, Victoria
Petrie Tableaux sculpture (1989). In front of Brisbane City Hall at King George Square by Stephen Walker
Perth kangaroo sculptures (1996, 1997 & 2000). St Georges Terrace, in several locations, Perth, Western Australia, by Anne Neil, Joan Walsh-Smith, Charles Smith
City Roo sculptures (1999). George Street, Brisbane, Queensland - made from scrapmetal by Christopher Trotter
Eastern grey kangaroo sculpture in the City Botanic Gardens
Kangaroo and joey sculpture at Queens Park in Ipswich, Queensland
Decorative arts and design
An early depiction of a kangaroo on an item of decorative art is the Macintosh & Degraves Token Shilling 1823. Another early example is the Garret salver. This item of Tasmanian colonial silver incorporates a kangaroo, an emu and wattle branches in its design.
The kangaroo has continued to be incorporated into decorative designs by craftspeople and designers in Australia and elsewhere in the world. The Terence Lane kangaroo collection at the National Museum of Australia consists of more than 150 objects and ephemera in a wide range of styles produced over a period of 150 years. The collection ranges from a one-metre-high Doulton ceramic kangaroo umbrella stand to small items of jewellery.
Kangaroos and sports teams
The kangaroo features prominently in sport. Australian sports teams with nicknames derived from the kangaroo (and wallaby) include the following:
Australian national teams
The Australian national rugby league team is nicknamed the Kangaroos.
The Australia national rugby union team is nicknamed the Wallabies.
The Australia national association football team (men's) is nicknamed the Socceroos.
The Australia national under-23 football team plays Football at the Summer Olympics and is nicknamed Olyroos.
The Australia national under-20 football team is nicknamed the Young Socceroos
The Australia national under-17 football team is the Joeys
The Australian Women's field hockey team is nicknamed the Hockeyroos.
The Australian national ice hockey team is nicknamed the Mighty Roos.
The Australian men's national basketball team is nicknamed the Boomers.
Australian domestic teams
The North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League is nicknamed the Kangaroos.
Perth Kangaroos IFC
United States
Kasey Kangaroo is the mascot for the University of Missouri–Kansas City
Zippy the kangaroo is the mascot for The University of Akron
The kangaroo is the mascot for Austin College in Sherman, Texas
The kangaroo is the mascot for Terryville High School in Terryville, Connecticut
Lizzie (a purple and white kangaroo) is the mascot of Lake Washington High School in Kirkland, Washington
Stomper is the new mascot for the TNA wrestling company.
The kangaroo is the mascot for State University of New York at Canton in Canton (town), New York
The kangaroo is the mascot for Wilmington Friends School in Wilmington, Delaware
Moe the Kangaroo is the mascot for Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia
Nashville Kangaroos
The kangaroo is the mascot for Killeen High School in Killeen, Texas
Abington Friends School, in Abington, Pennsylvania, has a kangaroo named Roo as its mascot.
Other countries
The Samoa national Australian rules football team is nicknamed the Kangaroos.
The FC Bohemians Praha, a Czech football team is nicknamed the Klokani (Czech for kangaroos) since their tour in Australia in 1927.
Etobicoke Kangaroos
Vienna Kangaroos
Place names
The kangaroo has inspired a number of place names in Australia. They include:
New South Wales
Queensland
South Australia
Tasmania
Victoria
Western Australia