Après la guerre Sino-Japonaise de 1895, les puissances occidentales ont commencé à s’imposer de manière plus agressive qu’avant dans l’empire semi-colonial Qing. Cette concurrence inter-impériale n’a certainement pas constitué un obstacle à la coopération et à l’échange continu de pratiques impériales. Les puissances se sont retrouvées entre autres dans l'imposition d’un discours commun de modernité.

In 1936, the Australian War Memorial acquired two stone lions that once guarded the Menin Gate entrance to the Belgian town of Ypres. The Memorial’s director, John Treloar, felt the Memorial had scored a “great scoop” because of their “historical value”. However, when the lions arrived in Canberra, it was apparent the damage they sustained during the war meant they would need to undergo some form of restoration. Unfortunately, little progress was made in this endeavour for several decades and the lions did not end up going on permanent display until 1991.