Public Monument and Sculpture Association National Recording Project
Cybele with Lions
Region ID | GW | |
Work ID | 299 | |
Manual Reference | KI/009/1 | |
Title | Cybele with Lions | |
Sculptor | Ewing, James Alexander | |
Architect | Bruce & Hay | |
Date of design | 1895-1897 | |
Year of unveiling | 1897 | |
Unveiling details | ||
Road | Morrison Street | |
Precise Location | 95 Morrison Street, north façade, above pediment, former Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society Building | |
A to Z Ref | 35 L16 | |
OS Ref | ||
Postcode | G5 | |
Work is | Extant | |
Listing Status | II* | |
Duty of Care | Carten Property Holdings | |
Commissioned by | Scottish Co-operative Wholesale Society Ltd | |
Notes | ||
An allegorical group comprising a standing, draped figure of Cybele holding a key and a cornucopia; flanked by two recumbant lions, representing the Goddess of all things the earth sustains attended by her familiars and showing that (in the sculptors words) "nothing is so ungovernable that she will master it". (1) | ||
The building was erected as the Co-Operative Wholesale Society's headquarters between 1893-97. In a letter to the Society's Directors, dated 23 September 1895, the sculptor detailed proposals and costs for the building's sculpture scheme. For £317, he would carve a pediment approximately 24 feet long by 8 feet high containing nine figures representing Justice and Brotherhood, surmounted by an eleven foot figure of Cybele with her attendant lions, and a ten feet high concrete figure of Light and Life to surmount the dome. There are other carved details at the entrance including a female keysone head, a shield with a 'wreath of plenty,' and 'cupids holding the bond of consistent unity.' which are not mentioned in Ewing's letter. (1) | ||
circa | ||
raw year | 1897 | |
Condition | Fair | |
At risk | No known risk | |
Inscriptions | In incised Roman lettering,below pediment, across entablature frieze: CO-OPERATIVE WHOLESALE | |
Signatures | ||
Elements
Element Details
Part of work | Material | Dimensions |
|---|---|---|
Sculpture | Blond sandstone | |
Assessment of Condition
Surface Character
Detail | Comment |
|---|---|
Biological growth | Green growth over most of group |
Corrosion, Deterioration | Sculpture weatherworn |
Structural Condition
Structural Condition | Comment |
|---|---|
None | |
Vandalism
Vandalism | Comment |
|---|---|
None | |