We often don't see the little quirks of Melbourne as we saunter along paths and walkways.

I suggest lifting our heads and enjoying some of the unusual nuances that make Melbourne so interesting.
A kangaroo or is it a fish?

This interesting combination appears on top of a shop in Glenferrie Road, Malvern.

Mouse over and see why...

Horse's head

The wall, built in 1888, onto which this horse's head sits is that of the Northern Cattle Market, the site of which has been used by the University of Melbourne and the United States Army.

The head originally hung over the entrance to the Horse Market.

Mouse over and see.

It's located on the corner of Story Street and Park Drive, Parkville.
Melbourne Style...

When cycling towards the city on the trail that runs under the South Eastern / Monash Freeway, this great graffiti was painted on one of the supports.

It always brought a smile to the journey.

Mouse over and see...

Sadly, it can't be seen anymore... as the local council painted it over.
When smoking was fashionable...

Not long ago it was fashionable to smoke... even to the point of it being 'set in stone'.

This figure, one of many, is located on the outer wall of the Fletcher Jones store, corner of Queen and Flinders Streets in the CBD.

Mouse over and see.
Religious symbols...

These symbols appear as a group on a building in Collins Street... quite unusual.

Reading about it, I have found that the Star of David is a hexagram found in cosmological diagrams in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism.

The Swastika*, seen either facing left or right, is an ancient cosmic or religious symbol holy in Hinduism, Jainism, Heathenry and Buddhism, thought to bring good luck. In the West, it is more widely known as symbol of Nazism^.

And the symbol in the middle of the hexagram is an Ankh, an Ancient Egyptian symbol of life.

You can see it high on the building next door to the Regent Theatre in Collins Street.

Mouse over and see.

* Swastika is Sanskrit literally meaning 'being fortunate'. It also is known as gammadion and fylfot. The Nazi Swastika emblem, first recorded in England in 1932, was known to the Germans as Hakenkreuz, literally 'hook-cross'.

^ You can also read how the Nazis plagerised and
stole in Hitler's Private Library