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THE STATUARY (2)
St. Michaels War
Memorial
This war memorial by R. R. Goulden can be found outside Saint Michael’s Church in Cornhill, just to the right of the entrance. It is a small bronze figure of a winged St. Michael holding a sword above his head. Four children are below on the left, and two what look to be Panthers are fighting on the right. The bronze inscription attached to the stone pedestal records that 170 of the 2130 men that enrolled on that particular spot, lost their lives in World War One. In 1927 a replica was unveiled by Field-Marshall Lord Plumer at Neuve Chapelle.
Hemminge and Condell
If you walk down Aldermanbury from Gresham Street you will come to Saint Mary’s Churchyard. There you will find the burial place of the two men who made Shakespeare famous. John Hemminge (1556 - 1630) and Henrie Condell (1550 - 1627) were two actors and friends of Shakespeare. They were the ones who gathered his manuscripts together over a 35 year period. The monument, designed by C. C. Walker and sculpted by C. J. Allen was erected in 1896. It consists of a bust of the bard, an open book, and text on all four sides.
The Broadgate Venus
A whole lot of woman here! It is certainly the biggest nude that I have ever seen. This huge figure, sculpted in bronze, by Colombian artist Fernando Botero can be seen lying above the Water Feature by Stephen Cox, in Exchange Square in the Broadgate complex. It weighs in at 5 tons.
James Henry Greathead
James Henry Greathead (1844-1896). Inventor of the Greathead Tunnelling Shield, a major contribution to the safety and speed of large underground tunnel projects. Chief Engineer on the City and South London Railway (now the Northern line on the London Underground) which started at King William Street. The world's first electric railway, which opened in 1890. You can find this statue on a tall stone plinth in the middle of the road in Cornhill next to the Royal Exchange. Update: It’s August 2023, and I have only just found out that this monument also acts as a ventilation shaft for Bank station! If you look below his feet, you will see the grid.
Gresham Grasshopper
Although not strictly a statue or sculpture, I think this deserves a place here. I noticed it on the wall of a building while walking along Lombard Street and I assume that it marks the house where Thomas Gresham moved to with his wife as he is known to have lived in Lombard Street for a time. It is obviously Thomas Gresham’s family crest, the grasshopper, with the letters TG above it on the bracket of the sign. There is also a grasshopper over the door of the building, number 68 Lombard Street.
Ganapathi and Devi
An abstract in carved stone, by Stephen Cox, stands at Sun Street Roundabout. It portrays the tension between opposites of belief. Positive - negative, male - female, ying - yang, birth - death. In Hindu, Devi is '”the Goddess”. Ganapathi alludes to the elephant god, Ganesh.
Fulcrum
When I first saw this “sculpture” I thought it was surplus building girders that had been left to be picked up by the scrap lorry! Entitled ‘Fulcrum’, it is by American artist Richard Serra. Four giant lumps of rusting iron stand at an entrance to the Broadgate complex. The artist must have had a smile on his face when he got paid for this!
Sir John Soane
Sir John Soane (1753- 1837) was the architect responsible for many great buildings in London, and his statue is housed in the wall of his most famous - The Bank of England. The great curtain wall built in 1835 still stands today surrounding the 5 acre site. You can find this statue at the rear of the bank next to Tivoli corner in Lothbury.
The Golden Boy
The Golden Boy on Pye Corner at the junction of Giltspur Street and Cock Lane. Erected where the Great Fire of London was said to have stopped. Originally built into the front of The Fortune of War pub, demolished in 1910, It bears the inscription: "This boy is in Memory put up for the late Fire of LONDON Occasion'd by the Sin of Gluttony 1666". Sculpted by Puckeridge.
Leaping Hare
One of a number of sculptures to be found in the Broadgate complex. ' Leaping Hare on Crescent and Bell ', to give it it's full title, by Welsh artist Barry Flanagan. He is a sculptor and print maker, with a reputation for portraying Hares with human attributes.
LIFFE Trader
This 20th. century sculpture by Stephen Melton originally stood in Walbrook almost opposite Cannon Street Station but for some reason was moved to the Guildhall. I saw it from a bus in 2022 back again on the street near Cannon Street. It shows a young city trader conducting business on a mobile phone. The plaque at his feet gives the information: “LIFFE Trader. Unveiled by Christine Mackenzie Cohen, Chairman of the trees, gardens and open spaces sub committee 1st October 1997”. The initials stood for “London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange”.
Captain John Smith
You can find this statue in a paved area to the right of Saint Mary le Bow Church in Cheapside. Captain John Smith was the famous adventurer saved from death by Pocahontas, with whom he returned to England. In 2009 the the small surrounding garden was paved over and enlarged.
Queen Anne
Queen Anne, Carved from Sicilian marble, this statue stands in front of Saint Pauls Cathedral. Around the base of the statue are four female figures representing Britannia, France, America and Ireland. The original statue was by Francis Bird but due to damage it was replaced in December 1886 by a replica sculpted by Louis Auguste Malempre and Richard Belt. It is surrounded by cast iron railings. The reason she stands here is that she was the reigning monarch when the cathedral was finally completed in 1710.
Female Figures
This group of topless ladies are above the entrance to a building in Lombard Street. A work in bronze by F. W. Doyle-Jones, it depicts symbolically: The power of the sea on the left, Fire on the right, and a semi sphinx with wings in the centre representing the uncertainty of the future, They were over the door of the Royal Insurance Buildings.
