Friday 29 November 2013

143 Fleet Street EC4

Mary Queen of Scots House was built in 1905 for a Scottish insurance company. The statue was the idea of one of the developers, Sir John Tollemache Sinclair, Bart, MP, who was a big fan of the ill-fated lady.
The architect was one R.M. Roe, who concocted a facade as frilly as a doily with lashings of French Flamboyant tracery. Sadly, the carver of the statue is unknown.
The image seems to be the only outside memorial of Mary, which lead to recent demands for a statue to be erected in Scotland. Ironically, it stands just along the road from a figure of her nemesis, Elizabeth I.

1 comment:

Stephen Barke said...

Why is there a demand for the statue to be moved. If a statue of Mary Queen of Scots is needed in Scotland why not simply commission a new one by a Scottish artist?