Glass for the oculus (circular window) above the new southern entrance of the Australian War Memorial has arrived by sea from Spain and is being inserted into its steel frame.

The southern entrance is part of the development program at the Australian War Memorial, sitting beneath the heritage entrance of the 83-year-old building. From the oculus, visitors will see the Hall of Memory dome beyond. The shape of the oculus is an inversion of that dome. Cast into the floor beneath the oculus are the 15 values from the stained glass windows in the Hall of Memory.

The oculus consists of a steel frame, manufactured in Melbourne, with glass inserts made in specialist facilities in Spain. The glass was measured to fit precisely into the framing “petals” of the oculus structure, each of which weighs 350kg.

The glass was unloaded on the memorial forecourt and placed into position by a crane fitted with suction cups to lift the glass. Workers will spend the coming weeks carefully inserting each 350-kilogram “petal” of glass into the steel oculus frame.

“The arrival of the glass for the oculus is the result of five years of planning and design work,” Australian War Memorial Director Matt Anderson said.

“The inverted dome of the oculus complements the heritage value of the original building.”

The familiar heritage entrance at the top of the stairs will re-open in September, followed by activation of the new southern entrance over the summer period.