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Discovering London

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Monday, 1 August 2011

Weekend Elephant #4 The Result!

This weekend's London elephant is probably passed by more people each day than any other. It took until Sunday morning though for one reader to correctly identify it. Congratulations to Helene from Brixton for not only supplying the location but also the sculptor.

Asia - Henry Hugh Armstead

The elephant comes from the Asia spandrel on the Whitehall frontage of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (formerly the Foreign, India, Colonial, and Home Offices). All the continents were carved by Henry Hugh Armstead for the building's architect George Gilbert Scott.

Africa - Henry Hugh Armstead
America - Henry Hugh Armstead
Australasia - Henry Hugh Armstead
Europe - Henry Hugh Armstead
Henry Hugh Armstead (1828 –1905) also provided large-scale sculptures for the Palace of Westminster and over 80 figures for Scott's Albert Memorial, but my favourite work of his in London is on a far smaller scale.

Prior to the building of the Albert Memorial, George Gilbert Scott commissioned a scale model, this is now in the Victoria and Albert museum. For the model Armstead provided all of the miniature sculptures. Scott was so pleased with Armstead's work that he wrote ‘I doubt whether either the central figure or a single group, as executed, is superior to the miniature models furnished by Mr Armstead’.

On a different note, sharp-eyed readers may have noticed the swastika patterns surrounding each sculpture. The building dates from 1861-1875, well before the ancient symbol became associated with the Nazis. There are many other innocent uses of the symbol in London. A recent article, and reader comments, on the excellent Great Wen blog describe these and also investigate the rumour of Nazi swastika just off The Mall.

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posted by Peter Berthoud @ 07:18   2 Comments

Thursday, 31 March 2011

A Cottage with a Sinister Past

This is  the entrance to "Duck Keeper's Cottage" in St James's Park, London. Duck Keepers really did live here once but their story can wait for another post.





Today, I want to look at the negative role this  picturesque little cottage has played in changing ecosystems around the world.

The cottage was built as the club house of the Ornithological Society of London, they were responsible for looking after the all the exotic birds in St James’s Park. They had money but lacked expertise and made a poor job of it.

In 1867 The Acclimatisation Society of the United Kingdom,  merged with the Ornithological Society and together they began to share Society’s club house on Duck Island.

The Acclimatisation Society brought with them considerable expertise and experience in helping non-native species adapt to life in the UK. It seemed a match made in heaven.

It wasn’t.

The Acclimatisation Society had sister organisations in France, America, Australia and New Zealand. They all shared a mission to transplant interesting new plants and animals across the globe. In terms of animals, "interesting" often meant tasty.

"Acclimatisation Dinners" were held on Duck Island. At one "Steamed Kangaroo" was served to members to help them judge whether it was worth introducing kangaroos to England, they decided not to.

But for a few brief years members of this global movement did achieve some "successful" acclimatisations. These were the people who brought Cane toads and Rabbits to Australia, both creatures that are major pests to this day, and to Britain they brought Japanese knotweed and Grey squirrels.The Grey squirrels drove out the native Reds and knotweed has caused more damage to buildings and structures than any other plant.

Another example of the eccentricity of the Society was the introduction of starlings to America.

A New York Member of the society, Eugene Schiffilin, thought it would be interesting for Americans to be able to see all the birds mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays. Starlings are mentioned in Henry IV, so with help from his friends in St James’s Park, he arranged a consignment of 100 starlings to be sent from London to New York and he released them in Central Park.

Today there are over 200 million starlings in the USA, they have driven many native birds to the brink of extinction and cause millions of Dollars worth of crop damage.

Each time I see people feeding Grey squirrels by the cottage, I smile. I doubt they realise that behind the "chocolate box" exterior lies a story of global environmental damage.

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posted by Peter Berthoud @ 07:38   0 Comments