The Justice Statue is one of the great iconic sculptures of London, and features in countless TV news reports as the ultimate representation of Justice when a grand trial commences or ends.
The figure of Justice is conventional in being a powerfully built woman, almost an Amazon, fully draped, and carrying her symbols of Sword and Scales. She stands tall and symmetrically, her arms stretched out to the sides, and the lines of her drapery – a single garment wrapped round her slim body, sleeved at the top and falling to form a long skirt down to cover the feet below – having some asymmetry but being close-wrapped enough to emphasise the balance of the figure from left to right. The scales in Justice’s left hand, which are the usual pan balance, are without chains, and of a light construction so that they do not visually overpower the slim sword on the other side. The sword has to be less than massive, or it would not look right being held up in one hand; even so, only mighty Justice could stand thus for long – and she is standing motionless, with no sense that she is in arrested motion, for Justice is Eternal. She stands upon a globe, for Justice straddles the world.
Looking closely at the figure of Justice, we see that her features are Classical, Roman rather than Greek, bar the columnar neck, and her expression is fierce, with grim mouth and frowning brows, for Justice is stern. Her hair is not so long, and seems to be drawn or pinned in a bun at the back of her head, above her crown. This crown, spiky and sun-like, makes for an excellent silhouette against the sky.
The sculptor was F. W. Pomeroy, one of the most important of the New Sculptors, and he also made most of the other sculpture on the exterior of the building, on which more in a moment. The Justice figure is extremely high up, around 200 ft above the road, and is therefore of some considerable size, being double height or 12 ft tall. The building, originally styled the New Sessions House, was put up between 1902 and 1907 to replace a previous Old Bailey, or Central Criminal Court, and the architect was E. W. Mountford.
The building is a good example of an Edwardian Baroque edifice in the grand manner, large, confident and rich in decoration. Inside, the main feature is a grand hall with a dome, which alas I have not had opportunity to visit, and contains paintings by Gerald Moira and W. B. Richmond, along with further sculpture by Pomeroy depicting Justice, Mercy, Temperance and Charity. Other interior carving and is by Gilbert Seale, and William Aumonier, and Seale was also responsible for the ornamental plasterwork. The tiles are mostly by Doulton of Lambeth, and the leadwork is by the famous Birmingham company of Henry Hope and Sons.