|
 Sir Isaac Newton - Westminster Abbey, London, UK
N 51° 29.985 W 000° 07.636
30U E 699386 N 5709314
The grave and memorial to Sir Isaac Newton, that stands in the nave of Westminster Abbey, includes a reclining marble statue of the great man himself.
Waymark Code: WM13AKY
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 10/27/2020
Views: 0
The
statue is of a life-size statue showing a reclining figure of Newton, in
classical costume, his right elbow resting on several books representing
his great works. They are labelled (on the fore-edges) 'Divinity',
'Chronology', 'Opticks' [1704] and 'Philo. Prin. Math' [Philosophia
Naturalis Principia Mathematica, 1686-7)]. With his left hand he points
to a scroll with a mathematical design shown on it (the 'converging
series'), held by two standing winged boys.
The inscription, beneath the marble statue, on the sarcophagus reads:
|
H.
S. E. ISAACUS NEWTON Eques Auratus,
Qui, animi vi prope divinâ,
Planetarum Motus, Figuras,
Cometarum semitas, Oceanique Aestus.
Suâ Mathesi facem praeferente
Primus demonstravit:
Radiorum Lucis dissimilitudines,
Colorumque inde nascentium proprietates,
Quas nemo antea vel suspicatus erat, pervestigavit.
Naturae, Antiquitatis, S. Scripturae,
Sedulus, sagax, fidus Interpres
Dei O. M. Majestatem Philosophiâ asseruit,
Evangelij Simplicitatem Moribus expressit.
Sibi gratulentur Mortales,
Tale tantumque exstitisse / HUMANI GENERIS DECUS.
NAT. XXV DEC. A.D. MDCXLII. OBIIT. XX. MAR. MDCCXXVI
|
This
can be translated as follows:
"Here is buried Isaac Newton, Knight, who by a strength of mind almost
divine, and mathematical principles peculiarly his own, explored the
course and figures of the planets, the paths of comets, the tides of the
sea, the dissimilarities in rays of light, and, what no other scholar
has previously imagined, the properties of the colours thus produced.
Diligent, sagacious and faithful, in his expositions of nature,
antiquity and the holy Scriptures, he vindicated by his philosophy the
majesty of God mighty and good, and expressed the simplicity of the
Gospel in his manners. Mortals rejoice that there has existed such and
so great an ornament of the human race! He was born on 25th December
1642, and died on 20th March 1726."
The Westminster
Abbey website has an article about Sir Isaac Newton that advises:
Isaac Newton
was born at Woolsthorpe in the parish of Colsterworth,
Lincolnshire on Christmas Day 1642, only son of Isaac, a farmer,
and his wife Hannah (Ayscough). His father died before his birth
and his mother married again and had three more children. He was
educated in Grantham and at Trinity College Cambridge and became
a Fellow of Trinity in 1667 and was Lucasian Professor from 1669
to 1702. His tutor Isaac Barrow is also buried in the Abbey.
Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1672, Newton served as
its President from 1705 to 1727. He became Master of the Mint in
1699 and was knighted in April 1705.
Newton is most commonly known for his conception of the law of
universal gravitation, but his other discoveries and inventions
in mathematics (e.g. the binomial theorem, differential and
integral calculus), optics, mechanics, and astronomy place him
at the very forefront of all scientists. His study and
understanding of light, the invention of the reflecting
telescope (1668), and his revelation in his Principia of the
mathematical ordering of the universe are all represented on his
monument in Westminster Abbey.
Burial
Newton died unmarried at Kensington on 20th March 1727 and was
buried in Westminster Abbey on 28th March. Before the funeral
his body lay in state in the Jerusalem Chamber (a room in the
Deanery) and his coffin was followed to its grave by most of the
Fellows of the Royal Society. The Lord Chancellor, the Dukes of
Montrose and Roxburgh and the Earls of Pembroke, Sussex and
Macclesfield were pall bearers. The Hon. Sir Michael Newton was
chief mourner (London Journal 8 April 1727)
Newton's grave is in front of the choir screen, close to his
monument. The Latin inscription on it reads:
Hic depositum est, quod mortale fuit Isaaci
Newtoni.
This may be translated as:
Here lies that which was mortal of Isaac
Newton.
Newton's Monument
Newton's monument stands in the nave against the choir screen,
to the north of the entrance to the choir. It was executed by
the sculptor Michael Rysbrack (1694-1770) to the designs of the
architect William Kent (1685-1748). It was finished in August
1730 and unveiled the following year.
The monument is of white and grey marble. Its base bears a Latin
inscription and supports a sarcophagus with large scroll feet
and a relief panel. The relief depicts boys using instruments
related to Newton's mathematical and optical work. One has a
telescope, one is looking through a prism and another is
balancing the Sun and planets on a steel yard. Others depict
Newton's activities as Master of the Mint (producing
coin of the realm) - the figures carry pots of coins and an
ingot (bar) of metal is being put into a furnace.
Above the sarcophagus is a reclining figure of Newton, in
classical costume, his right elbow resting on several books
representing his great works. They are labelled (on the
fore-edges) 'Divinity', 'Chronology', 'Opticks' [1704] and
'Philo. Prin. Math' [Philosophia Naturalis Principia
Mathematica, 1686-7)]. With his left hand he points to a scroll
with a mathematical design shown on it (the 'converging
series'), held by two standing winged boys. The painting on this
scroll had been erased or cleaned off in the early 19th century
and was re-painted in 1977 from details in Newton's manuscripts.
The background is a pyramid on which is a celestial globe with
the signs of the Zodiac, of the constellations, and with the
path of the comet of 1680. On top of the globe sits a figure of
Urania (the muse of Astronomy) leaning upon a book. On either
end of the base is his coat of arms, two shinbones in saltire,
within a decorative cartouche.
The monument originally stood out against the flat front of the
choir screen, but was enclosed within the present decorative
arch when Edward Blore re-modelled the screen in 1834.
|
Note:
|
With
the re-opening of Westminster Abbey after Covid-19 lockdown
photography, for private use, has been allowed in most areas
of the Abbey when services are not taking place (see here).
There is an entry fee payable to enter the Abbey that is
currently £18 for an adult (October, 2020).
|
Visit Instructions:
You must have visited the site in person, not online.
Recent Visits/Logs:
| There are no logs for this waymark yet. |
|
|
|
|