Generations of children and their adults have been captivated by the dioramas at the Australian War Memorial and now the memorial is taking a leap into the 21st century.
The memorial has released imagery of a diorama depicting Australian troops making an amphibious landing in Dili, Timor-Leste as the International Force East Timor peacekeeping operation began.
This latest addition comes right before the 25th anniversary of the Interfet on Friday.
David Sutton, senior historian for the memorial’s new Peacekeeping: 1947 to Today gallery, said the diorama reconstructs day two of Interfet operations, when the Royal Australian Navy landed hundreds of Australian Army troops.
Interfet was the Australian-led peacekeeping mission between 1999 and 2000.
The largest deployment of Australian troops since Vietnam, it included Australian Defence Force personnel from the Navy, Army and Air Force, who began landing in the then East Timor on September 20, 1999.
The visual reconstruction is based on thousands of hours of research of archives, photographic records, and face-to-face interviews with veterans and East Timorese people who were there.
But the public will have to wait to see it in person. The diorama will be on display when the new Anzac Hall, which is now under development, opens in 2026.
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