Public Monument and Sculpture Association National Recording Project
Sir William Collins Fountain Photograph
Region ID | GW | |
Work ID | 13 | |
Manual Reference | CA/002 | |
Type | Drinking Fountain | |
Title | Sir William Collins Fountain | |
Sculptor | Mossman, John G | |
Date of design | 1881 | |
Year of unveiling | 1881 | |
Unveiling details | 29 October 1881 | |
Road | Saltmarket | |
Precise Location | Glasgow Green, east of Saltmarket entrance and McLennan Arch | |
A to Z Ref | 36 L17 | |
OS Ref | ||
Postcode | G1 | |
Work is | Extant | |
Listing Status | II* | |
Duty of Care | Glasgow City Council | |
Commissioned by | Temperance reformers | |
Notes | ||
Drinking fountain commemorating Sir William Collins and his services to the Temperance cause, comprising a pedestal of pink and grey granite supporting a bronze statue of a girl representing Temperance (gazing at a flower and holding an upturned pitcher), a bronze portrait medallion of Collins on its west face, a bronze inscription panel on its east face, and two lion mask water spouts on its north and south faces | ||
Commissioned by temperance reformers to commemorate Collins' services to their cause. The fountain was erected in 1881, during Collins' lifetime, and inaugurated on 29th October of that year. Since then the fountain has been relocated several times in the immediate vicinity of its present location. It was moved here c.1996. The figure of Temperance was smashed and toppled from its pedestal by vandals in 1994, and repaired by Douglas Gordon of E.K. Metal Fabricators (East Kilbride) | ||
Sir William Collins (1817-1895). Born in Glasgow, the son of a publisher and temperance reformer, he was educated in Glasgow and entered his father's business as an apprentice at an early age. In 1848 he became a partner in the firm and continued to run the business on his own after his father's death, manufacturing stationary as well as publishing. The firm expanded greatly and he took on several partners, including his two sons in 1859. In 1868 he joined Glasgow City Council, was elected a magistrate in 1873 and served as Lord Provost from 1877-80, the first total abstainer to be elected to that office. He was knighted in 1880, and later served on the Glasgow School Board (1888-94). He died in Edinburgh and is buried in Glasgow's Necropolis. His firm survives as a major publishing house | ||
circa | ||
raw year | 1881 | |
Condition | Good | |
At risk | At Risk | |
Inscriptions | Cast intaglio lettering on bronze inscription panel on east face of pedestal: ERECTED / BY TEMPERANCE REFORMERS / IN RECOGNITION OF / VALUABLE SERVICES / RENDERED TO / THE TEMPERANCE CAUSE / BY / SIR WILLIAM COLLINS / LORD PROVOST / OF THE CITY OF GLASGOW / 1877-80 / 29TH OCTOBER 1881 | |
Signatures | Incised on statue plinth: J. MOSSMAN. SC. 1881 Incised on portrait medallion, under shoulder: J. MOSSMAN. SC. 1881 | |
Elements
Element Details
Part of work | Material | Dimensions |
|---|---|---|
Pedestal | Polished grey and pink granite | |
Portrait medallion | Bronze | |
Statue of Temperance | Bronze | |
Lion masks | Bronze | |
Inscription panel | Bronze | |
Assessment of Condition
Surface Character
Detail | Comment |
|---|---|
Previous treatments | Statue of Temperance has been restored (see below) |
Bird guano | Bird guano on upper surfaces |
Structural Condition
Structural Condition | Comment |
|---|---|
Broken, missing parts | Lion mask water spout missing from south face of pedestal |
Broken, missing parts | Fixtures and chains for drinking cups missing from north and south faces of pedestal |
Vandalism
Vandalism | Comment |
|---|---|
Graffiti | Inking on portrait and paint on pedestal, east face |
