Category: Commerce Page 1 of 25

The Lloyd’s Register of Shipping and its maidens.

On 3rd April 2025

In Architecture, Commerce, Flowers, Sculpture

I first wrote briefly about this building in June 2020 saying that I would return later to write more and I have finally got around to it!

Lloyd’s Register began as The Society for the Registry of Shipping in 1760. In that year, eleven men met in Edward Lloyd’s coffee house to talk about publishing a list of ships, a register to define their quality and safeguard life and property carried on them. Much of the Register’s history, including its origins, has been preserved in the organisation’s Archives which contain over 1.1million digitised and catalogued assets including ship plans and surveys.

It has now eveolved into a charity, the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, whose objectives remain the same as those of Lloyd’s Register: to protect people from harm and to ensure the infrastructure that we depend on for day-to-day living is safe for society both now and in the future. The Foundation also strives to provide the right skills and education to achieve these objectives.

The building dates from 1899 t0 1901, its architect was T.E. Colcutt and the sculptors George Frampton and J.E. Taylerson.

It can be found at 71 Fenchurch Street, EC3M 4BS on the corner with Lloyd’s Avenue …

The north and south turrets …

There are numerous maidens holding models of different types of vessels …

The second maiden from the left holds the model of a steamship whilst the figure immediatly behind her holds a model of a galleon …

This panel also contains six maidens. Those in the foreground hold a ship’s telegraph, a hammer and a propeller. A cog or ratchet wheel emerges behind the leg of the right-hand figure …

The central panel contains a standing female personifying Lloyd’s. She wears a crown of sails and stands on a ship’s prow, holding in one hand a caduceus, in the other a book. Behind her is a Zodiacal sphere, and to either side of her are two mermaids ..

A series of bronze maidens holding model ships …

The impressive entrance …

The panel on the left may represent ‘Trade’. At the centre stands a naked youth, wearing mercury’s winged bonnet and holding the caduceus in one hand and in the other an orb surmounted by a galleon …

At his feet are waves bearing a symmetrical arrangement of sailing-ships laden with exotic fruit. Behind the youth is a representation of the globe. Four maidens stand to the left and three to the right, some wearing ethnic costume. One holds an elephants tusk, another a sheaf of corn. An Indian woman holds a war axe whilst the remainder hold closed caskets.

In the panel on the right there is at the centre another naked youth holding a sextant and a compass …

At his feet are waves bearing a symmetrical arrangement of sailing ships laden with packages. Behind the youth is the sun, its rays projecting to form a pattern in the background. The sun is flanked by ornamental columns, with compasses at the finials. There are three maidens on the left and four on the right, carrying navigational instruments, a globe and the model of a ship.

The spandrel above the right hand window on Lloyd’s Avenue. At the centre, from left to right, are the Arms of Cardiff and the words VILLÆ CARDIFF, the Arms of Hull, and the Arms of Southampton, with the words VILLÆ SOUT(HAMP)TONIÆ …

Flanking these are cross-sections of the engines of steamships and pairs of maidens to either side, holding tools and navigational instruments.

Above the left hand window …

At the centre, from left to right, the coat of arms of an unidentified towm, with motto …S…COMMUNI.TATIS V, followed by the Arms of Dublin and the Arms of Belfast with its motto (PRO) TANTO QUID RETRIBUAMUS, surrounded by a trophy of machinery connected with shipbuilding. Pairs of maidens to left and right hold plans and a model of a steamship.

There are also some amusing figures nearby, children playing with dolphins on a leash …

I haven’t been able to capture all the great aspects of this building, so I do recommend a visit, particularly on a sunny day …

In my descriptions, I am extremely grateful to Dr Philip Ward-Jackson and his comprehensive guide Public Sculpture of the City of London from which I have quoted extensively.

Some miscellaneous news and images.

New Moon above St Giles …

The Big Egg Hunt is on in the City (these two are at Aldgate and Barbican respectively) …

There’s a new image on the Tower 42 screen (but so far I haven’t been able to find out what it’s about – maybe something to do with Turkey?) …

Tulips are emerging in the Silk Street beds, hooray …

And, in the middle of them, a Camassia. Maybe from last year …

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The Port of London Authority building (plus a classic 1970s TV adventure series).

By The City Gent

On 23rd January 2025

In Architecture, Commerce, Sculpture

Just across the road from Tower Hill Underground Station is one of London’s finest architectural landmarks, the former Port of London Authority (PLA) building on Trinity Square.

It towers over Trinity Square Gardens, home of the Mercantile Marine Memorial to the Merchant Seamen who died in both world wars …

The old PLA headquarters harks back to the great days of Empire and global trade. The ‘Great and the Good’ gathered to lay commemoration stones a few years after building work commenced in 1912 …

The inauguration of the building by Prime Minister Lloyd George in 1922 was reported as an event of national importance. The creation of a unified Port Authority in 1909 had been facilitated by an Act of Parliament, the organisation being set up to Protect the Port of London from the increasingly destabilising effect of competition between rival dock companies …

The grand classical entrance features four Corinthian columns. It is three storeys high and topped by a massive tower with a giant figure that would have been clearly visible from the river…

Old Father Thames stands triumphantly, holding his trident and pointing
east, paying homage to the prosperity of trade between nations. The
trident, his lush beard and the anchor at his feet associates Old Father
Thames with Poseidon/Neptune – the Greek/Roman god of the sea – and
shows how classical symbolism was used to into the 20th century to
celebrate London’s influence over global maritime trade …

On the west side of the tower, within a galleon drawn through the waves by two sea horses, there stands a winged, nude male figure. He symbolises ‘Prowess’ and weilds a large antique oar …

On the east side is ‘Agriculture’, personified by a winged female figure with a flaming torch in her hand drawn in a triumphal chariot by two oxen. The beasts are lead along by a youthful male figure representing ‘Husbandry’ …

At street level is ‘Commerce’. A bearded male figure holds the scales of trade and a basket of merchandise. Before him is the lamp of truth …

‘Navigation’ is represented by a young woman with one hand on a ship’s wheel and the other holding a chart. Her foot rests on a globe and around her are the symbols of shipping …

Resting against elaborate lampposts outside the main entrance are two rather plump cherubs …

Inside the original building was a spectacular rotunda topped by a magnificent glass dome, created to emulate that of St. Paul’s Cathedral. This was totally destroyed in the World War II Blitz and I have only been able to find four images giving some idea of what it looked like …

The front of the building after the bombing …

In the 1970s, after the Port of London Authority moved to its current location in Tilbury, the building was renovated and the central courtyard was filled in with office space. It was then occupied by the European headquarters of the insurance broker Willis Faber Limited and continued to serve as offices until 2008. When Willis Faber moved on to a new location, the building lay vacant for several years.

It was purchased in 2010 by Reignwood, a Chinese investment company, and is now a Four Seasons Hotel. I must say, it really does look splendid.

Inside the main doors …

The rotunda has been reimagined …

It’s open to non-residents for drinks and snacks.

By the way, the 1946 reception of the first general assembly of the United Nations was hosted here in what is now known as the UN Ballroom. The occasion was attended by (among others) King Faisal of Saudi Arabia and US first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. From its second-floor location, the room’s windows overlook the Trinity Square Gardens and beyond to the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. It’s available to book for events …

The Museum of London Archaeology practice were given access to the site during redevelopment and a selection of the artefects they discovered are on display in the reception area. These are just a few of the exhibits – it’s well worth popping in to the hotel to have a look …

Now something readers more my age will remember!

The Professionals was a TV series that ran from 1977 to 1983 featuring Bodie and Doyle, senior agents of the British intelligence service CI5 (Criminal Intelligence 5), and their handler George Cowley, fighting terrorism and similar high-level crimes. The PLA building appears in the opening sequence of the second series.

Watch it in full here, including music – volume up! : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55gpif0a0P8

Some stills from the sequence …

The famous railings they stride past are still there …

It’s worth walking round to the north side of the building which is also impressive …

You can just about make out a plinth in front of the building. It’s a bust of one of my heroes, the diarist and brilliant naval administrator Samuel Pepys …

The music carved on it is the tune of Beauty Retire, a song that Pepys wrote. The garden in which it stands in Seething Lane contains a number of paving stones representing his life and events that occurred during it. You can read more about them here and here. Just across the road is St Olave Hart Street. It’s tiny and wonderfully atmospheric, being one of the few surviving Medieval buildings in London.

Incidentally, it was exactly 67 years ago today that the terrible Smithfield Market fire of 1958 broke out. I have written about it in my recent blog Goodbye Smithfield Market – Special Edition.

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‘Money Talks’ at the Ashmolean Museum.

By The City Gent

On 5th December 2024

In Art, Commerce, Social History, Special Exhibitions

Last Monday I had the pleasure of visiting this super exhibition and I hope you will enjoy my report even though I have travelled once more outside my usual beat of the City.

The exhibition is described as follows: ‘Art and money have much in common. Both influence who and what we think of as valuable. It can be surprising to think of money, so functional in form, starting its life as drawing or sculpture. The current Money Talks exhibition at the Ashmolean explores the place of money in our world through art, highlighting a multitude of global perspectives across time. Works on show range from rare monetary portraits and historic depictions of wealth to contemporary activist Money Art, alongside more unusual examples from some of the best-known artists including Rembrandt and Warhol. Together, they expose the tension between the power of money and the playfulness of art’.

Here are some of my favourite exhibits.

The exhibition entrance, with a dollar sign by Andy Warhol …

There is the fascinating story of the design for the coinage of Edward VIII who chose to abdicate before any came into circulation. I like the ‘warning’ on this box: NOT TO BE OPENED EXCEPT IN THE PRESENCE OF TWO SENIOR OFFICERS OF THE ROYAL MINT …

What it contained …

Edward proved rather difficult because he wanted the coins to incorporate his ‘best’ profile …

‘Cubist’ designs submitted for the reverse of Edward’s coinage. They were rejected, with the Mint Advisory Committe declaring that they ‘could not be taken seriously’ …

They probably had a point.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II …

The slightly disconcerting hologram …

An enormous tapestry ‘Comfort Blanket’ by Sir Grayson Perry is based on the design of a very familiar monetary object – the £10 banknote. In Sir Grayson’s own words, it is ‘a portrait of Britain to wrap yourself up in, a giant banknote; things we love, and love to hate’

The two defining artistic movements of Art Nouveau and Art Deco left their imprint in monetary art, much as architecture, jewellery and furniture. ‘Jugendstil’ or German Art Nouveau in money can be best exemplified through the works of the Viennese ‘Avant Garde’ artists like Gustav Klimt, Franz Matsch and Koloman Moser. This is Moser’s draft artwork for 50-crown note for the Austro-Hungarian Bank …

The Inflation Display – some crazy high value notes …

Artists have always highlighted and reflected on wealth, power and money. But the contrasting way in which money is depicted and treated in Eastern and Western traditions of art is interesting in itself. Perhaps owing to the bad press money gets in the Bible and the Christian world view, money is often depicted in negative ways in Western Art.

Greedy usurers and tax collectors, miserly men, conniving and hoarding women are often the subjects associated with money. The ‘crookedness’ of money is also physiognomic: these subjects are often shown with grotesque features, unkempt appearances and unsavoury expressions.

Two Tax Gathererers, 1540s, Workshop of Marius van Reymerseale, an artist known for his satirical paintings of greed and corruption …

Tax collectors were paid percentages of the revenues they collected and would extort every last penny from taxpayers.

The Miser, 1780s, by Thomas Barker of Bath …

His unwillingness to part with money is underlined by the poor quality of his clothing and a generally unkempt look.

The man with the moneybag and his flatterers, Johnnnes Wierix, around 1620 …

This crude composition based on a Flemish proverb uses toilet humour to allude to the power of wealth. A defecating rich man scatters coins from a sack and ‘ass-kissers’ and ‘brownnosers’ scuttle up his humongous behind.

On the contrary, in the Eastern traditions, money is celebrated as an agent of fulfilment, plenitude and fertility.

This shift in attitude prompts Eastern artistic engagement with money to be far more positive and fun. It celebrates money’s agency in bringing prosperity, wealth and happiness. Here we see representations of gods and goddesses, symbolisms and happy cultural associations with money …

A seated figure of Kubera, Buddhist god of wealth, Tibet, 18th–19th century.

Lakshmi, Hindu goddess of wealth …

Humour, satire, irony and wit are often deployed as critical tools by artists to playfully poke fun or shine a light on different social and political topics. These include many of the enduring questions and issues facing society, from the pressures of inflation to the intersections between gender, celebrity and status.

James Gillray lampoons a belching and farting prime minister …

Pitt the Younger, depicted as Midas, Transmuting All into Paper, 1797.

Another Gillray. Political Ravishment, or the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street in Danger, 1797 …

Prime Minister Wlliam Pitt, the young man, is shown trying to woo an old lady, the Bank of England, as he slips his hand into her pocket.

Bringing us up to date, a rather careworn looking King Charles III …

The final exhibit, Susan Stockwell’s sculpture ‘Money Dress’ is an excellent example of a ‘feminist’ intervention using money as medium. Shaped like an impressive Victorian gown, it is dedicated to the early 20th-century explorer and anthropologist Mary Kingsley (1862-1900) …

The exhibition is open until 5th January 2025 – highly recommended.

Finally, some images from the streets.

Last Saturday I was feeling a bit grumpy as I went to buy a paper when I met this lovely man pushing his beautiful Christmas dust cart …

We shook hands, wished one another a Happy Christmas, and I didn’t stop smiling for ages!

Obviously many people cycle to Oxford Station to catch the train. How do they get to their bike if it’s in the middle of this lot …

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