Inland Revenue Entrance Lion – Manchester, UK
Posted by: 
dtrebilc
N 53° 28.710 W 002° 14.722
30U E 550081 N 5925767
This lion is guarding the entrance to the old Inland Revenue office that was built in 1876. It is sharing its duties with a unicorn, and each is holding a shield which forms part of the U.K. coat of arms.
Waymark Code: WMEAB3
Location: North West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 04/26/2012
Views: 1
Both the unicorn and the lion are being used as heraldic devices.
Although most people think of Unicorns as Mediaeval mythical creatures, in the UK they are usually used as heraldic references to depict Scotland.
King James VI of Scotland adopted a unicorn as a heraldic device, and then we he also became King James I of England and Ireland.
The lion is being used to represent England.
The shield itself uses a rampant lion in one quarter to represent Scotland, and 2 quarters with 3 lions in each to represent England. The 4th quarter has a harp to represent Ireland.
Later when the United Kingdom was formed the coat of arms was adapted to have a lion supporter on the left hand side and a unicorn supporter on the right.
At the time the building was erected The Inland Revenue was a department of the British Government responsible for the collection of direct taxation. As such it is appropriate for it to use heraldic devices to represent England and Scotland from the UK coat of arms.
Rather than having the normal coat of arms, the supporters have been split and stand on each side of the door.
These days the building has a rather more mundane use, and so the lion and unicorn now greet customers as they enter a restaurant.
Physical Address:
Corner of Mount Street and Central Street
Manchester, Greater Manchester United Kingdom
Web Site: [Web Link]
|
Visit Instructions:
Take a photo of the lion.
Recent Visits/Logs:
| There are no logs for this waymark yet. |
|
|
|