The Hall of Silence, located in the centre of the building, is striking in its starkness, and has a powerful effect on visitors.
The room is circular and George Rayner Hoff's sculpture Sacrifice stands in its centre. The floor is white Ulam marble. There is a bronze flame that flares out from the sculpture designed to symbolise the eternal flames of Sacrifice. The ceiling curves up toward the carved marble balustrade that defines the Well of Contemplation, a large circular opening in the floor above. This opening provides only natural light for the Hall of Silence and has the effect of focusing that light onto the central sculpture. The cornice is a marble frieze in which are carved the names of the great battles fought by Australian forces during the war. According to architect Charles Bruce Dellit, the names “complete the message which the sculpture symbolising Sacrifice is intended to deliver”
