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Queen Eleanor Memorial Cross

Eleanor of Castile
Castile 1241 - Harby, Nottinghamshire 1290
was the first queen consort of Edward I of England
(Wikipedia)

Thomas Earp
1865

Description

Octagonal gothic tower with a cross at the top and eight crowned statues of Queen Eleanor - four showing her as queen and four with Christian symbols, eight kneeling angels at their feet, and shields lower down copied from extant crosses at Waltham and Northampton. The eight statues of Queen Eleanor are all different, although especially the four with orb and sceptre are very similar:

with orb and sceptre.
with a church model.
with orb and sceptre,
with a basket
with orb and sceptre,
with a church model.
with orb and sceptre.
with a book.

London - Queen Eleanor Memorial Cross
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Annotation

The Eleanor crosses were a series of twelve originally wooden, but later lavishly decorated stone, monuments of which three survive intact in a line down part of the east of England. King Edward I had the crosses erected between 1291 and 1294 in memory of his wife Eleanor of Castile, marking the nightly resting-places along the route taken when her body was transported to London. The cross at Charing Cross, in what was then the Royal Mews, was the most expensive, built of marble in co-operation between an architect, Richard of Crundale, who was the senior royal mason, and a sculptor, Master Alexander of Abingdon. A replacement cross was erected in 1865 in front of Charing Cross railway station. It is not a faithful replica, being more ornate than the original.

The new cross was designed by the architect of the hotel, E.M.Barry, who is best known for his work on Covent Garden. It was constructed by Thomas Earp of Lambeth from Portland stone, Mansfield stone (a fine sandstone) and Aberdeen granite.

Sculptor

Thomas Earp (1828 - 1893), British sculptor; see also Earp & Hobbs (Wikipedia).

Sources & Information

Wikipedia, List of public art in the City of Westminster.
Bob Speel, London sculpture.
Wikipedia, Eleanor cross.
Peter Matthews, London's Statues and Monuments (Botley: Shire, 2012), p. 17.

Locatie (N 51°30'30" - W 0°7'31") (Satellite view: Google Maps)

Item Code: gblo026; Photograph: 3 August 2014
Of each statue we made photos from various angles and also detail photos of the various texts.
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© Website and photos: René & Peter van der Krogt

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