Lord Melville's Monument, St Andrew Square Edinburgh

Category

Library Item

Item no

18644

Title

Lord Melville's Monument, St Andrew Square, Edinburgh

Description

The Melville Monument stands in the middle of St Andrew Square. A statue of a figure stands on top of a column which sits on a square shaped base. The base of the monument is surrounded by trees and shrubbery which are marked off from the road by railings. A horse drawn carriage makes its way along the road. On the pavement a man walks his dog, and two well dressed women are greeted by a man.

Artist / maker

Shepherd, Thomas Hosmer

Engraver

Barber, T

Date

1829

Size

19.6 x 7.0 cm

Type

Engraving

Location

Edinburgh and Scottish Collection

This image comes from 'Modern Athens', a book of engravings based on drawings by Thomas Shepherd published in 1829. In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries Edinburgh was growing rapidly. The popular neoclassical architectural style of the time was inspired by the ancient Greeks and Romans, and Edinburgh was nicknamed 'Athens of the North'. Shepherd's engravings celebrate the beauty of Edinburgh and show many notable buildings and streets both within the city, and further afield.

The Melville Monument, St Andrew Square, was erected between 1820 and 1823 to the memory of Henry Dundas, the 1st Viscount Melville, who died in 1811. The monument comprises an imposing Roman column almost 42 metres in height, crowned by a statue of Dundas. The column itself was designed by William Burn, who received advice on its foundations from Robert Stevenson following concerns expressed by local residents as to its stability. The statue is by the sculptor Robert Forrest from a model by the English sculptor Francis Legatt Chantrey. It was only commissioned when construction of the monument was well underway, and was not added until 1827-28.

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Related subjects

Animals > Mammals > Dogs

Animals > Mammals > Horses

Architecture > Architectural features > Columns

Architecture > Architectural features > Railings

Architecture > Monuments > Memorial monuments

Business > Service industry > Banks

Landscape > Landscape architectural facilities > Gardens

Places > Edinburgh areas > New Town

Places > Scotland > Edinburgh

Plants > Trees > Trees

Transport > Land > Horse and carriages

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