Unexecuted design for a First World War Memorial
Design
1923
1923
| Artist/Maker |
Design for a proposed war memorial made up of three tiers. At the lowest tier a statue of St Mary and children, seated on a plinth, is housed under a portico made of four columns. The top two tiers are cylindrical with a row of columns surmounted by a dome and a statue of a triumphal St George holding a child. The memorial is adorned with saints standing on plinths and set in niches. The monument sits on an eight-sided base of three steps.
A plan for the plinth of the statue of the mother is partially visible in the lower right register. The drawing is annotated on all sides with suggested inscriptions for the memorial.
A plan for the plinth of the statue of the mother is partially visible in the lower right register. The drawing is annotated on all sides with suggested inscriptions for the memorial.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Unexecuted design for a First World War Memorial (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Charcoal, watercolour and gouache |
| Brief description | Unexecuted design for a First World War Memorial in Coventry by H. W. Simister, one of two proposed designs, 1923. |
| Physical description | Design for a proposed war memorial made up of three tiers. At the lowest tier a statue of St Mary and children, seated on a plinth, is housed under a portico made of four columns. The top two tiers are cylindrical with a row of columns surmounted by a dome and a statue of a triumphal St George holding a child. The memorial is adorned with saints standing on plinths and set in niches. The monument sits on an eight-sided base of three steps. A plan for the plinth of the statue of the mother is partially visible in the lower right register. The drawing is annotated on all sides with suggested inscriptions for the memorial. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Object history | One of two designs made by H.W. Simister in response to a competition in 1923 for a First World War Memorial in Coventry. The competition was won by Thomas Francis Tickner (1864-1924) and the Memorial was built in 1927 as a stepped obelisk around 27 metres high. Simister’s designs contrast starkly with that modernist vision: his two alternative proposals combine neo-Classical elements with traditional Christian iconography. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Association | |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.6-2019 |
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| Record created | June 19, 2018 |
| Record URL |
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