Public Monument and Sculpture Association National Recording Project

NIMROD

Region ID

MR

Work ID

129

Manual Reference

MR/BUR29

Type

Sculpture

Title

NIMROD

Sculptor

Leuw Green, Betty

Date of design

Year of unveiling

1975

Unveiling details

Road

Precise Location

A to Z Ref

OS Ref

Postcode

Work is

Lost

Listing Status

Not listed

Duty of Care

Commissioned by

Notes

A life-size reclining male nude with his right arm resting on his raised right knee. The sculpture is a made of bronze resin and fibre glass, and was cast at the Bury Arts and Crafts Centre.

Representing her idea of “the complete handsome male specimen”, the sculptor offered the sculpture to Bury Corporation who accepted it and decided to install it in the centre of the ornamental lake in Townley Park. However the new sculpture quickly became an objective for children paddling in the lake to climb upon. Such high spirited-action was soon followed by more deliberate vandalism and the sculpture soon deteriorated. Mounted on a pyramid-shaped pedestal, the nude figure attracted comments from people who considered the figure inappropriate in a place used by children. According to the sculptor "Nimrod" became a landmark to be reached by children who paddled or sailed boats in the lake. Such high spirited actions - 'It was loved to death by the children rather than vandalised' - resulted in damage which the sculptor repaired. Eventually the Bury Director of Recreation and Amenities had the sculpture removed for further restoration (1) but instead of it being returned to the park it was moved to the town's public swimming baths and, later, to Whitefield Library. It finally passed into the care of the corporation's parks department and is presumed to have been lost. A head of Nimrod, sculpted at the same time as the main figure, was purchased in 1999 by Bury Art Gallery

circa

raw year

1975

Condition

Don't know

At risk

Don't know

Inscriptions

Signatures

Elements

Element Details

Part of work

Material

Dimensions

Figure

Bronze resin and fibre glass

Assessment of Condition

Surface Character

Detail

Comment

Sculpture presumed destroyed

Structural Condition: nothing recorded

Vandalism: nothing recorded