To General Hutton the shield was symbolic of the co-operation of the naval and military forces of the Commonwealth. This simulated multiple-exposure image shows the path of the rising sun through the eastern sky on the morning of the 21st of each month, from December. Hutton had earlier received as a gift from Brigadier General Joseph Gordon, a military acquaintance of long-standing, a ‘Trophy-of-Arms’ comprising mounted cut and thrust swords and triangular Martini Henri bayonets which were arranged in a semi-circle around the Crown. Moreover, the location of the sun's path across the sky varies with the seasons, as shown in the computer-generated image below, which shows the eastern sky, viewed from a mid-northern latitude. The most widely accepted version of the origins of this badge is the one that attributes the selection of its design to a British officer, Major General Sir Edward Hutton, the then newly appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Australian Forces.

In 1902 a badge was urgently sought for the Australian contingents raised after Federation for service in South Africa during the Boer War. The so-called ‘Rising Sun’ badge, worn on the up-turned brim of a slouch hat, typified the Spirit of ANZAC - the camaraderie of Australian soldiers to fight for the Crown and the British Empire. In the prolonged and bitter struggles of World War 1 and World War 2, the soldiers of the 1st and 2nd AIF (Australian Imperial Forces) had this esprit-de-corps, and its focal point was a humble badge. One of the mainsprings of an army is its esprit-de-corps - that spirit which gives a soldier purpose and the endurance to carry on when others might give up.

Image of the sun rising