Moving 8 tonne lintel stone

Category

Library Item

Item no

17740

Title

Moving 8 tonne lintel stone which had moved 10cm due to "freeze thaw". Put back as part of the Twelve Monuments Project.

Description

A group of labourers are working at different levels at the top of the large stone structure of the National Monument. The Monument has scaffolding supporting it and stands in front of trees. All of the men are wearing high visibility jackets and hard hats. A row of houses can be seen beyond the trees.

Artist / maker

MacLean, Kevin

Date

2008

Type

Digital image

Calton Hill is situated at the east end of Princes Street in Edinburgh. It rises to a height of 108 metres and is another of the city's hills created by volcanic activity. Several monuments stand on the hill. Most prominent amongst these are the Nelson Monument, built in the shape of a telescope, and the unfinished National Monument, modelled on the Parthenon in Athens. The National Monument is situated on Calton Hill in Edinburgh. It was intended to be a grand memorial to the Scots killed in the Napoleonic Wars. It was to be a facsimile of the Parthenon in Athens, and would have functioned as a church. The collection of subscriptions began in 1822, and C. R. Cockerell and William H. Playfair were employed to work on the project. Funds were exhausted by 1829, and the monument has remained unfinished, leading to it sometimes being referred to as 'Edinburgh's disgrace'.

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Related subjects

Architecture > Monuments > Memorial monuments

Manufacturing Industry > Manufacturing equipment > Scaffolding

People > Industry > Construction workers

Places > Edinburgh areas > Calton Hill

Places > Scotland > Edinburgh