The Public Purse

An amazing piece of public art, this sculpture is located in the Bourke Street Mall area on Bourke Street. It was commissioned by Steve Perry in 1994, and is a part of lots of sculptures and art scattered across the CBD. Can be used as seating but a large number of tourists (and melbournians) gaze at it as they disembark the trams or take a photo. Heard it's made oof polished marble, yet others claim it's different things. The term public purse could refer to the geo location being a major shopping precinct in the city, or to the government use of taxes ie public money for the use of infrastructure. Along with the urban myth, about the kids in the tunnels, a rumour about this sculpture is theres a time capsule hidden inside, and another that it represents a shoppers dropped purse.

The Public Purse is a sculpture, a large piece of public/pop art, located on the pavement, on the corner of Bourke and Elizabeth Streets in front of H&M at the Melbourne GPO. This is a busy corner in the heart of Melbourne's Bourke Street Mall shopping district and it's for this reason that to me the purse symbolises shopping and perhaps that some lady dropped her purse. The purse is so large that you just cannot miss seeing it when walking past or going past on a tram. For newcomers to the city, it intrigues and they have to take photos of it and touch it. Many just sit and rest on it. Also, very much like the "Under the clocks" (on the steps of Flinders Street Railway Station) or the Melbourne Central Clock, the purse is often used as a meeting point, "I'll meet you at the purse". "The Public Purse" was created by sculptor Simon Perry and installed on this busy shopping corner in 1994. It's made out of Calca red granite and stainless steel, and is in the shape of a coin purse. It's a very unique and distinctive work of art. Love it!!! It doesn't open but rumour has it that when Perry made the purse he slipped a time capsule and a real coin purse with a few coins inside it.

One of many pieces of public art located around the CBD of Melbourne, ‘The Public Purse’ is intended to represent the use of public money by government institutions. In its location near a busy tram stop you can use it as a seat or merely admire its ironic commentary on how society views the use of taxes and levies on the population.

FIVE STARS FOR QUIRKINESS IN PUBLIC ART This is literally a giant clam shell purse that you can either puzzle over, admire, sit on or photograph. It's right in front of the Melbourne GPO building (which is now a H&M clothing store) in the Bourke Street mall.

That’s great Christmas shower.

One of the most horrible things I have seen in the block, the worst part about it is it itself.

Awesome artwork. Not snatching this one!

Purse