WHILE MANY AUSTRALIANS visit their capital each year and enjoy the attractions of the nation's only planned major city I wonder how many among them truly appreciate the staggering breadth and depth of the great national collections found in a place that - at least at a superficial glance - appears overwhelmed by its political agenda. Yet Canberra holds so much that can give us insight into who we are and where we've come from, and it also provokes us to reflect on where we're headed. From the humble,ephemeral, bizarre, precious and rare, to the iconic, the well-known and the obscure - these are items that tug at the heartstrings or dazzle with their beauty. From reminders of monumental sacrifice in times of war, our robust democracy and the achievements of Australians famous or otherwise forgotten, to our spectacular natural diversity and the struggles of indigenous Australians since 1788 - so many collected memories are held in our national capital.
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