St Lawrence Jewry Memorial Fountain - Carter Lane, London, UK
Posted by: Groundspeak Regular Member Master Mariner
N 51° 30.777 W 000° 05.840
30U E 701405 N 5710864
This magnificent drinking fountain was moved to its current location at the eastern end of Carter Lane from its previous location in Guildhall Yard. It is now opposite St Paul's Cathedral.
Waymark Code: WMJ6CM
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 10/01/2013
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member bill&ben
Views: 3

There is a plaque attached to the fountain that reads:

City
of
London

The St Lawrence & Mary Magdalene
Drinking Fountain

Commissioned by the united parishes of
St Lawrence Jewry & St Mary Magdalene

Originally located in the Guildhall Yard
outside the church of St Larence Jewry from 1866 to 1970

Designed by architect John Robinson and sculptor Joseph Durham

Restored and relocated here in 2010

The St Lawrence Fountain website tells us about the original position of the fountain and also contains maps showing exactly where it stood:

The St Lawrence Jewry fountain was located just to the west of the Guildhall Yard, and south of the Guildhall itself, in the City of London.

The fountain sat between the surrounding buildings of the Church of St Lawrence Jewry to the south, and the City Courts of Justice, immediately north.

The same website tells us about the fountain's design:

A description of the fountain published in The Builder, 16 June 1866, describes the memorial as in ‘the Pointed style or architecture which prevailed in Italy during the fourteenth century’. The memorial was 32 feet (around 9.5 metres) tall and nine feet (around 2.7 metres) square at its base, set upon two steps, with the principle font plinth curved around the basin. Divided approximately in half, the lower bulk was of Portland stone and framed the fountain, styled as a bronze basso-relief of Moses striking the Rock, which dispensed water into the bowl. Above, polished granite shafts support a canopy structure with statues of the patrons saints of the churches on the east and west sides. On the north and west sides were white marble slabs engraved with the names of the past benefactors, beginning with a Thomas de Kellseye in 1375 and ending with Mrs Anne Saville in 1765.

The website also tells of the iconography of the fountain:

The water fountain of the monument was designed as sculpture that actively pumps water into a dish, when a metal knob was pushed. The scene is of Moses striking the rock at Horeb (Exodus. XVII. IV-VI). To the left, a Jewish woman holds a cup to the lips of her child.

St Lawrence, the deacon and martyr, is shown with a gridiron, the instrument of his death. St. Mary Magdalene is shown with her emblem, the ointment jar with which she cleansed Christ’s wounds.

The same website also tells us about the project:

The fountain was originally erected in 1866 outside the Church of St Lawrence Jewry near Guildhall as a gift to the City of London from the Metropolitan Drinking Fountain and Cattle Trough Association. It was designed by architect John Robinson and the bronze sculpture was carried out by the artist Joseph Durham. It was dismantled into approximately 150 pieces and put into storage in the 1970s during the redevelopment of Guildhall.

The fountain was restored and rebuilt at the eastern end of Carter Lane Gardens at the south of St Paul’s Cathedral.

The project was completed in August 2010.

A substantial portion of the original fountain stonework was re-used and supplemented with new matching carved stone where the original stone had been lost or damaged beyond repair. The original features, a bas relief of Moses striking the Rock and a stone bowl underneath, have been retained. The fountain has been built on a new plinth with two steps to match the historical setting of the original fountain by St Lawrence Jewry Church.

Type of Historic Marker: Monument

Historical Marker Issuing Authority: City of London

Age/Event Date: 08/01/2010

Related Website: [Web Link]

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