The facts about 'Sydney Opera House'

Sydney Opera House must be one of the most recognisable images of the modern world - up there with the Eiffel Tower and the Empire State Building - and one of the most photographed.

Not only is it recognisable, it has come to represent 'Australia'.

Although only having been open since 1973, it is as representative of Australia as the pyramids are of Egypt and the Colosseum of Rome.

The Opera House is situated on Bennelong Point, which reaches out into the harbour. The skyline of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the blue water of the harbour and the Sydney Opera House, viewed from a ferry or from the air, is dramatic and unforgettable.

The Sydney Opera house:

* Was designed by Danish architect Jorn Utzon
* Was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20 October 1973
* Presented, as its first performance, The Australian Opera's production of War and Peace by Prokofiev
* Cost $AU 102,000,000 to build
* Conducts 3000 events each year
* Provides guided tours to 200,000 people each year
* Has an annual audience of 2 million for its performances
* Includes 1000 rooms
* Is 185 metres long and 120 metres wide
* Has 2194 pre-cast concrete sections as its roof
* Has roof sections weighing up to 15 tons
* Has roof sections held together by 350 km of tensioned steel cable
* Has over 1 million tiles on the roof
* Uses 6225 square metres of glass and 645 kilometres of electric cable