MonoMonday: Ancient Building

Well of course "ancient Australian building" is pretty much a contradiction in terms. While the indigenous culture goes back possibly 40,000 years, most aboriginal tribes were essentially nomadic and their structures impermanent. Consequently we are left with the oldest buildings since European settlement.

The first road of any consequence, built in the early days of New South Wales, was the trail to the Bathurst plains, the original route of which lies very close to where I live. This year is in fact the bicentenary of its construction. Along the way, small wayside inns were constructed to supply lodgings for travellers seeking their fortunes in the farming lands and gold diggings of the near west. This old structure is one such.

A mere handful of such historic buildings remain today which, in the context of this country's history, loom large in significance. I couldn't resist a little sepia treatment but this constitutes my contribution to MonoMonday mm56.